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This paper applies Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) as well as data analysis to gain a better understanding of the existing perception on the education system. 45,278 tweets were downloaded and processed. Using a lexicon-based approach, examining the most frequently used words, and estimating similarities between terms, we detected that a predominantly negative perception of the education system exists in most of the analysed countries. A positive perception is identified in certain low-income nations. Men exhibit a more positive sentiment than women as well as a higher subjectivity in some countries. The countries that exhibit the most positive perceptions India, Canada, Pakistan, Australia, South Africa and Kenya are also those that manifest the highest subjectivity.

Objective The literature reports nursing academics avoid manikin-based simulation because they feel intimidated by the technology. With that in mind we sought to design a manikin-based simulation learning experience for nursing students, with low technological burden for those nursing academics expected to work with the technology. Setting A multi-campus Australian regional university school of nursing. Subjects Nursing academics with little or no experience in manikin-based simulation. Primary argument Nursing academics are encouraged to use manikins in their clinical teaching but little has been done to address their fears and concerns around the technology. We argue that taking simple steps to decrease the technological burden will help to encourage nursing academics uptake of manikin-based simulations, as a favoured pedagogy in clinical teaching. Conclusion The technological burden around manikin-based simulation was reduced by: (1) choosing medium level fidelity simulations, (2) designing simulations where students operate the equipment, (3) preparing participants for the SLE with a pre-brief video and instruction handouts, (4) offering academics roles as observers, and (5) providing on-site technological support. Nursing academics were encouraged by the process and more inclined to engage with manikin simulations. Designing simulations that address nursing academics' fears and concerns around simulation technology encourages simulation uptake. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines how two Britons, working in Western Australia and Natal, respectively, engaged with ideas about the civilisation and education of Indigenous people. It is argued that concepts of civilisation were debated by missionaries, researchers and members of the public. Using the correspondence, publications and private journals of two educators, Dr. Henry Callaway, Church of England missionary in Natal, and Ann Camfield, teacher in Western Australia, the paper draws attention to their respective approaches to education. Each contributed to broader imperial debates concerning the meaning of race in relation to educability. Education in both places, while connected to these global ideas, was also profoundly influenced by local context. 'Civilisation' and the 'civilising mission' may have been unifying goals for missionaries in different sites of Empire, but understandings of what civilisation should inculcate, or do, varied according to particular circumstances. These histories are best understood in transnational and comparative perspective.

This paper presents a theoretical discussion of recent policy efforts to raise the qualification levels of the Australian early childhood workforce. Pierre Bourdieu's theoretical tools enable the early childhood profession to be conceptualised as a dynamic field in which particular forms of symbolic and cultural capital are valued, with consequences for the relative position of educators at different qualification levels. The paper briefly considers the historical and structural forces that have shaped the relative position of differently qualified educators in Australia. It then applies Bourdieu's theories to the policy proposition that these positions can be improved through the acquisition of higher qualifications; a proposition that not all educators have embraced. It concludes by considering implications for practice arising from this theoretical approach; both in raising awareness of the different positions of educators in the professionalisation agenda, and in creating opportunities for diverse forms of capital to be recognised and valued. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background statement: Accurate completion of a Neurological Assessment including the Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) is of the upmost importance in identifying and escalating neurological deterioration. This assessment must be standardised to ensure patient safety and quality care. Aim: This paper aims to review the standardisation of the GCS inclusive of a comprehensive Neurological Assessment in metropolitan hospitals in Australia. Existing literature on this tool in clinical practice, will be further explored in this review. It will primarily focus on efficacy, standardisation and accuracy of completing a Neurological Assessment on an Adult. Methods: A comprehensive review of the topic was undertaken, to reveal literature that supports the aim of this paper. Medline and Embase were accessed, with the use of Boolean operators to ensure literature met the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Results: Five articles were selected as appropriate and relevant to meet the needs and expectations of this review. Research suggests inconsistency and validity of the tool, which may affect patient safety. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents the findings from a project investigating the circumstances, experiences, perspectives and service needs of young people caring for a family member with a disability or long-term illness. Using qualitative methods, our research explored the experiences of two cohorts of young carers--younger carers aged 7 to 17 years and young adult carers aged 18 to 25 years. The concept of "bounded agency" offers an explanation for the way that younger carers' and young adult carers' decisions and aspirations can be shaped by the barriers and contexts in which they find themselves. The study compares the impacts of caring on the participants' education, employment, health and social life. Important differences are identified, particularly relating to young adult carers' future aspirations as they approach key normative transitions into young adulthood. The paper concludes with implications for services and policy for young carers. (Contains 1 table.)

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to identify student and staff experiences with online learning at higher education (HE) using the software Elluminate Live! Design/methodology/approach: This paper adopts a qualitative approach, focusing on the reflections of participants (student and teacher) collated over a 12 month period of piloting online classes with Elluminate Live! Findings: A number of insightful themes and issues emerged from the data collected from the journal reflections as well as other source documents such as meetings and emails. The themes considered in the paper include: increased flexibility and cost reductions, technical challenges, resistance to online learning, extension of online facilities and student engagement, and visual literacy skills. Research limitations/implications: The school's virtual classroom strategies need to address staff and student concerns. Staff training and the establishment of effective support structures for embedding safe, secure, and rewarding virtual classrooms are required. Once these issues have been addressed, online classes can be expanded across numerous discipline areas within the school. Originality/value: Currently, Australian scholarly papers focussing on the use of Elluminate Live! as a teaching tool to help develop curriculum at tertiary level are scarce. The significance of this study is to share the important knowledge garnered through reflective insights (via feedback and journal writing) which can act as a guide to other higher education universities looking at undertaking online learning. (Contains 1 figure.)

Out-of-home care (OOHC) refers to alternative care, such as foster care, kinship care or residential care, for children and young people up to 18 years old who are unable to safely live with their families. Child maltreatment is common, and 1 in 35 children in Australia received child protection services in 2014-2015. Placement in OOHC is considered an intervention of last resort, meaning that those in care are the highest risk cohort receiving protective services. I conducted a small pilot study to explore what is currently taught to future doctors about children in OOHC and found that there is no formal teaching about these children in the University of Melbourne Doctor of Medicine course. Child abuse and neglect is covered in the paediatric curriculum, and mandatory reporting appears to be well covered. After reflecting on the implications of this omission, I considered a number of ways material about this topic could be implemented into medical school curricula. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this conceptual paper we discuss the value of doubt in teacher education for ourselves and, by implication, more broadly. We develop an argument for the value of doubt in teacher education that grows out of the recognition of the complexity of teaching. We interrogate meanings of doubt in this context and debate the value of doubt and certainty. We also indicate the challenges of fostering and nurturing doubt in teaching and teacher education. We suggest that doubt is a necessary element of teacher education as its presence helps to prepare our students for their careers as teachers in a complex and uncertain world. It is also more fundamentally honest than a professed certainty on the part of the teacher educator.

The uptake of web-based lecture technologies for recording and delivering live lectures has increased markedly in recent years. Students have responded positively, and for many their use has transformed learning--freeing them up from rigid timetables by providing choice in lecture attendance and supporting learning by extending the lecture experience and enabling them to revisit key concepts and ideas in their own time. Less transformational has been the impact on teaching. Although changing attendance patterns and disquiet about the quality of learning are of concern to many, lecturers have largely responded by simply modifying lectures. For most, the challenges of catering for the learning needs of a cohort with variable lecture attendance have not been addressed at a whole of the curriculum level. The technologies have been added on, rather than integrated into the curriculum. This paper will review the changes taking place in learning and teaching, explore the reluctance to embrace more wholesale change to the curriculum, and discuss the implications for institutions in the face of ongoing change. (Contains 1 table.) [This article was originally published in "ALT-J: Research in Learning Technology," v18, n3, p251-263, Nov 2010.]

Many contemporary sociologists suggest that a feature of modern life is that the practices and identities associated with "place" are eroded. The local no longer matters in everyday life as it once did. Some national governments are persuaded of the possibility of an urban dystopia of Orwellian dimensions, and have found a response in theories and rhetorics of social capital, citizenship and communitarianism. They have instituted strategies to address an imaginary of harmonious local communities. This paper examines one such government intervention and shows how four schools in Tasmania, Australia, took up the invitation to strengthen ties with their local communities. The projects reveal that the local still exists and matters, but they also hint at other possibilities. It is argued that by working with a "place-based" curriculum to assist young people in building local networks and engaging productively with their local neighbourhoods, schools might provide important resources for identity-building and learning.

In August 2023 RMIT University (Melbourne, Australia) announced it would cease delivering a program of chiropractic education. The program commenced in 1975 and was the first in the world to be funded by a National government. Today it is officially being 'taught out' and will cease to be in just 4 years. As irresponsible as this decision may seem from a Chiropractor's perspective, it remains RMIT's right to determine which programs it delivers and those which it does not. The lesson the profession must learn is that state-funded universities can not be expected to reflect the passion that their education creates in its graduates, especially Chiropractors. In past papers I have made this comment and now formalise and index it: 'Australia's publicly-funded institutions of higher education have no redeeming qualities to warrant them holding custody of a program of Chiropractic education'; they most certainly do not and can not replicate the integrity of a purpose-focussed private college nor match the integrity and academic commitment evident in many non-Australian universities throughout East Asia which are guided by a strong social conscience. The usual claim is that a university with multiple disciplines provides cross-fertilisation of ideas and high levels of teaching quality from discipline experts in other fields, but in Australia this can not really be claimed to have been found true. There is also a claim that within a university Chiropractic academics will hone their scholarship, write, and publish; we know this is laughable. RMIT has been far from exceptional for Chiropractic education for most of its 30 or so years as a university created by one political party's agenda. It is healthy for the profession to now be forced into examining new models of education to better serve the profession and create a stronger professional identity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 1936, Prof A. P. Elkin attended a seminar in Hawaii lasting several weeks, on the topic of 'native education'. In his various papers presented to a range of experts from the region and beyond during the formal conference held in Honolulu as part of the residency, Elkin set out his views on the future of the Indigenous people of Australia. Education would be pivotal to this new approach on pragmatic and humanitarian grounds. Elkin concurred with the findings of the residency: local forms of adapted education were considered appropriate for most Aboriginal Australians, only a minority continuing into further education; communities as well as children should be better prepared for their integration into the nation as the Indigenous people. This paper sets out to interrogate the proximity of anthropology and education in these claims, and the elision of Aboriginal people's agency including their contemporaneous campaigns for equal education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The discussion in this paper is based on the assumption that international education is equated to recruiting and educating international students, even though its true concept goes far beyond this narrow understanding. The purpose of this research is to look at the key factors that influence recruiting young Chinese students, and make sure all who work in this field understand how their business will achieve success. This is done through an analysis of the Chinese education system, the history of young Chinese students studying abroad, China's economic outlook, the Australian and Chinese governments' attitudes and international education policies, and the expectations of the students and their families. The article concludes with some constructive recommendations and suggestions. (Contains 1 table and 8 footnotes.)

There are important issues for rural communities in Australia in relation to the provision of education for their young people (HREOC, 2000). This is particularly so in an era when successful completion of education is becoming increasingly vital as the pressures of a globalised economy mean that many rural and farming businesses are struggling to prosper. The term "place-based education" is used by educators and researchers who have a focus on the well-being and effective learning of students. This paper explores what is meant by "place-based education" and how this concept of education is being implemented in some rural schools in Australia, although usually without using this term. A review of literature about effective literacy learning will demonstrate why teaching that is place-based is important for rural students. What the implementation of place-based education might look like in rural schools is also explored. (Contains 9 footnotes.)

Increasingly, there are expectations internationally that schools will use research to inform their improvement initiatives. Within this context, this paper brings together findings from two large-scale Australian studies – the Monash Q Project and the University of Newcastle's Quality Teaching Rounds Project – to explore educators' patterns of engagement with research. The combination of these studies provides data from a larger and more diverse sample (n = 774) than other recent Australian studies, and integrates insights from direct and indirect approaches to investigating educators' research engagement. The analysis highlights several common themes associated with educators' research use including: the perceived credibility of different sources; the relevance and usability of research; and affordances of access to research and time to use it well in practice. Newer and more nuanced insights include: the interrelationships between collaborative and directed research use; the need for research to be convenient in terms of access and usability; the role of trusted colleagues in helping to bridge gaps between research and practice; and educators' distrust of research itself. The paper argues that these insights provide important cues as to how systems and school leaders can help educators to increase and improve their use of research in practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: To explore undergraduate nursing and midwifery student perspectives of using digital patient systems on clinical placements. Design: This was an interpretative qualitative design study. Methods: Undergraduate nursing and midwifery students in a large Australian metropolitan university were invited to participate in two focus groups from April to June 2019. Twenty (20) students participated and data on their perspective of using digital systems on placement were collected. Thematic analysis using NVivo 12 software was undertaken. Findings: Students identified benefits and challenges when moving between paper records and digital systems. Whilst paper reporting was more efficient for some processes, the students recognised the advantages of digital technology, such as enabling greater confidentiality and consolidation of patient data in one place. However, they also reported difficulty with student access and the size of the portal digital workstation at the bedside. Generally, the lack of preparation and access was considered frustrating and mitigated some of the benefits described when using digital systems. Conclusions: Nursing and midwifery students prefer to be prepared for both paper and digital record keeping. Whilst students identify the benefits of digital platforms, not having direct access mitigates the benefits of these systems. Students identified the use of simulation and interactive modules prior to commencement of clinical practice to enable them to feel more confident with using the systems in patient care. Impact: Health care students require direct access to digital health platforms whilst on clinical placement to facilitate their learning. Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) are in a unique position to work with health care providers to better prepare health care professionals, including nurses and midwives, to work with digital health care systems. Further research is needed to develop the educational preparation for nurses, midwives, and other health care professionals to work with digital systems in practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: A growing body of evidence suggest an association between physical activity levels and students psychological well-being. A number of research studies have evaluated playground interventions that aim to increase physical activity levels, decrease conflict and bullying, and improve students behaviour. The HAPPY Study will evaluate the success of an intervention combining environmental modifications, teacher development, and peer support that can culminate in an easy to implement, low cost and effective model for increasing physical activity, and improving psychological well-being for children.Methods/design: Data will be collected at six New South Wales (NSW) primary schools, on physical activity levels, on-task time during classes, and social support for physical activity during a 12 month Cluster Controlled Trial (CT). Three quantitative data collection tools will be used to capture student's physical activity levels during lunch and recess breaks (the SOPARC tool), student's on-task behaviour during classes following recess and lunch breaks (the BOSS tool) and where students receive the most encouragement to be physically active from (the Physical Activity Social Support Scale survey). Baseline data will be analysed against follow-up data, collected after an intervention that is rolled out in all schools as part of a stepped wedge CT design.Discussion: A review of relevant Australian and New Zealand literature suggests that playground interventions can be successful at increasing physical activity levels, increasing social and conflict resolution skills in students, and decreasing incidences of bullying. This study will investigate any correlation between physical activity levels, and student behaviour during classes following breaks.Trial Registration: Australian and New Zealand Clinical Trials Register ACTRN12616000575437 , registered May 2016. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines responses to the trend for increasing participation in tertiary education, linking developments in higher education with those in apprenticeship systems, in Australia and the United Kingdom. In both sectors, expansion proceeded for several decades, but was robustly criticised in both countries. The expansion of access to these two forms of tertiary education, therefore, was contested and potentially precarious. The paper finds, through analysis of official data, that participation in higher education and in apprenticeship was actually almost static, or fell, in both countries in the 2010s. Yet criticism of expansion continued in media commentary during this decade. The paper both explains and takes issue with the arguments against expansion, which have been influential in both sectors. It discusses some ways forward to understand the phenomenon better, and also the need to address the problems caused by the restriction of opportunities. Comparative analysis between the two sectors has not previously been undertaken. It is argued in the paper that such analysis enriches the theoretical lenses through which expansion of access may be viewed, and that it may suggest avenues for future research, and perhaps, for advocacy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose -- This paper explores the development of microcredentials (MCs) through a regional lens, considering their implications for lifelong learning and skilled labour mobility in Asia and the Pacific. It also examines recent global initiatives led by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Design/methodology/approach -- The study reviews recent global initiatives aimed at developing shared definitions and principles for MCs, as led by UNESCO, taking into account the importance of existing initiatives such as the pilot project launched by the Australian government in 2022. The formalization of MCs within national education systems is also examined, with reference to frameworks developed by organizations like the European Union (EU), Australia and the Malaysia Qualifications Agency (MQA, 2020). Findings -- The paper underscores the increasing attention from international organizations and governments to the development and recognition of MCs, with significant efforts in countries like Australia and pilot initiatives in New Zealand and Malaysia. However, it also highlights that many MC projects in Asia are still in their early developmental stages, emphasizing the need for further progress and formalization. Originality/value -- This paper offers a unique perspective on the development of MCs in the Asia--Pacific region and their potential role in international education. It explores the prospects for MCs in international education, including student mobility and cross-border online courses. The challenge of integrating MCs into existing systems for recognizing international qualifications is discussed. Overall, the paper contributes to the understanding of MC frameworks as essential tools in the formalization of lifelong learning in the region, supported by the provided citations (OECD, 2021). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Media constructions of schooling provide suggestions about what should be expected of the school experience. Studies on discourses of schooling have examined how the school is framed in media discourses, but few have examined how it is formed mundanely and repeatedly in advertisements promoting products that are not directly educational. This paper examines how the school is constructed in a range of television advertisements that sell products that are not directly educational such as cereal and broadband Internet, focusing on how schools come to be framed negatively in advertising narratives. The television advertisements often use the technique of governmentality, whereby they attempt to direct the conduct of viewers by suggesting that self-improvement is achievable through personal enterprise. These advertisements position parents as agentive consumers of education, whose consumption habits are central to their children's scholarly success within problematic educational spaces.

The persistent failure of contemporary policies to improve school retention rates and close the achievement gap between students from low and high socio-economic (SES) backgrounds should be a matter of grave concern. In this article, we set out to show what it means to be educated in a context of disadvantage from the perspectives of young people attending a senior secondary public school in regional Australia. Acknowledging that youth are experts in their own lives, we draw extensively on student narratives of the funds of knowledge and opportunity structures that support and/or constrain education and employment opportunities in low-income neighbourhoods. Although young peoples' stories of hope and agency go some way to undermining the deficit thinking about these students and their families, we argue that the realisation of their aspirations requires institutional support and policies that address the systemic causes of educational disadvantage. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

At a time when political leaders and media pundits seek to narrow the English curriculum and reduce its knowledge structure to the "basics," it is helpful to revisit the potential of different approaches to learning in English that have evolved over time. In this paper I reflect on the semantic features of personal growth, cultural heritage, skills and cultural analysis models of English and exemplify their uses for engaging students with challenging texts like "Macbeth". Following this, I return to case study material collected during the classroom work of one teacher and his Year 9 students, and reinterpret their texts in the light of these four models of the discipline. The development of students' work over time reveals how this teacher drew on the meaning potential of each model and demonstrates the power of a principled and recursive use of these in classroom teaching.

The "boy turn" in research on gender and education has sought to understand how social practices and schooling contribute to the process of orientation to particular identities. This paper applies the theories of affect to explore the story of an underprivileged, low-achieving Samoan boy, as he engaged with learning Chinese in an Australian primary school classroom. Through an ethnographic lens, observational, journal entry and interview data reveal that learner identity is not a fixed thing; rather, it is contradictory in nature and constantly impacted by curricular and pedagogic regimes. In this paper, I argue that pedagogic practices, which appear to generate affects and open up spaces for embodying a desire to learn, need to be brought to the fore in classrooms. Research on the affective dimensions of boyhood can add to our understanding of boys' experiences with learning and learner identity, so as to positively influence educational practice today. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Trans and gender-diverse people visiting pharmacies may not always receive optimum care due to pharmacists' lack of knowledge and confidence to provide such care. This situation prompts a need for training. Objectives: This paper aimed to describe a guide to the design, implementation, and evaluation of a training program on transgender healthcare for pharmacists in Australia. Methods: The Implementation Mapping Framework provided a foundation for the design, implementation, and evaluation of this training program. Through active involvement in the program development, trans and gender diverse people and pharmacists guided the program design, ensuring alignment with the cultural, social, and healthcare contexts. Results: The needs analysis highlighted the necessity for training for pharmacists to improve their cultural awareness and pharmacotherapeutic knowledge about transgender healthcare. Applying a novel Gender Inclusivity in Pharmacy Framework, online modules—(1) Transgender healthcare—language, terminology, and key healthcare issues, (2) Gender-affirming therapies, and (3) Case studies in transgender healthcare—were developed to enable the implementation of a training program. Conclusion: The Implementation Mapping Framework and the Gender Inclusivity in Pharmacy Framework proved effective tools for providing an education program for pharmacists. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The global population is ageing rapidly and there is a need for strategies to promote health and wellbeing among older adults. Nutrition knowledge is a key predictor of dietary intake; therefore, effective educational programmes are urgently required to rectify poor dietary patterns. Digital health technologies provide a viable option for delivering nutrition education that is cost‐effective and widely accessible. However, few technologies have been developed to meet the unique needs and preferences of older adults. Objective: The aim of this study was to explore technology use among older adults and qualitatively determine the content needs and design preferences for an online nutrition education resource tailored to older adult consumers in Australia. Methods: Twenty adult participants aged 55 years and older (95% female) participated in one of four 2‐h participatory design workshops. In each workshop, prompted discussion questions were used to explore participants' technology use and preferences and to explore content needs and design preferences for an online nutrition education resource specific to older adults. Results: All participants were regularly using a range of different devices (e.g., smartphones, tablets and computers) and reported being comfortable doing so. Participants wanted a website that provided general nutrition information, practical advice and recipes. To enhance engagement, they sought a personalised resource that could be adjusted to suit their needs, included up‐to‐date information and allowed for easy sharing with others by exporting information as a PDF. Conclusions: Participatory design methods generate new knowledge for designing and tailoring digital health technologies to be appropriate and useful for the target audience. Specifically, older adults seek an online resource that has large and simple fonts with clear categories, providing them with practical advice and general nutrition information that can be personalised to suit their own needs and health concerns, with the option to export and print information into a paper‐based format. Patient or Public Contribution: Older adults actively participated in the development and evaluation process to generate ideas about potential features, functionalities, uses and practicalities of an online nutrition education resource. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding the drivers of student dropout from higher education has been a policy concern for several decades. However, the contributing role of certain factors—including student mental health—remains poorly understood. Furthermore, existing studies linking student mental health and university dropout are limited in both methodology and scope—for example, they often rely on small and/or non-representative samples or subjective measures, and focus almost exclusively on main effects. This paper overcomes many of these shortcomings by leveraging unique linked administrative data on the full population of domestic students commencing undergraduate studies at Australian universities between 2012 and 2015 (n = 652,139). Using these data, we document that approximately 15% of students drop out of university within their first academic year. Critically, students receiving treatment for mental health problems are 4.3 (adjusted) to 8.3 (unadjusted) percentage points more likely to drop out of higher education. This association remains in the presence of an encompassing set of potential confounds, and is remarkably uniform across segments of the student population determined by individual, family, and programme characteristics. Altogether, our findings call for increased policy efforts to improve student mental health and to buffer against its deleterious effects on retention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper contextualises a keynote address delivered at the 2022 Speech Pathology Australia National Conference in Melbourne, Australia. The paper aligns with the conference theme of Beyond Borders from the perspective of moving beyond borders of regular practice to develop strong partnerships and networks within our communities to advocate and support necessary change. Change or enhancement to current practice is necessary if we are to reduce current inequities in education experienced by many children in our communities, including those with communication challenges. Strengths-based and culturally responsive literacy approaches to supporting children within the context of their family and community are increasingly gaining support as we address this challenge. The Better Start Literacy Approach (Te Ara Reo Matatini), currently being implemented in junior school classrooms across New Zealand is described. It is one example of large-scale implementation of a strengths-based and culturally responsive early literacy approach, based on the science of reading. Data support the effectiveness of the Better Start Literacy Approach in significantly enhancing the foundational literacy skills of 5- and 6-year-old children, including those who commence school with lower levels of oral language ability. Through establishing strong partnerships within communities, speech pathologists have much to offer in motivating systems level change to enhance early literacy success for all learners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper details the gendered oppressions of young female teachers in three elite boys' private schools in Australia. Drawing on Foucauldian analytics and the theory of practice architectures, we explore the discourses and practices that work together to silence and disempower female teachers in these schools. There is an unevenness in these accounts, as there are also female teachers in the study who appear to successfully circumnavigate these issues. However, this apparent wherewithal of some female teachers speaks to the internalisations of gender oppression as much as it does to the teachers' agency. This paper illuminates these gender oppressions, which are made possible because they remain hidden and unchallenged. The findings of this study raise thorny issues for school-based leadership, but also for educational policy-makers, because gender oppression is seemingly inextricable from the social practices that elite private boys' schools both advocate and rely on for positional advantage in schooling markets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper four final-year education students describe one aspect of their science pathway course, a place-based experience in an urban ecological setting. The aim of the place-based experience was to combine community service and science knowledge to focus on critical, reflective thinking and civic responsibility. The assessment task required the students to construct a digital narrative of their experience. (Contains 5 figures.)

It is interesting to reflect upon past conversations and to explore their implications for current practice. That is the point of the current paper, which looks back at our progress towards adopting a rural lens to drive policy--to develop initiatives for rural education based upon rural needs, rather than apparent metro-centric political decision making and policy development.

This paper reflects on some changing contexts of the discussion of curriculum and pedagogy since the late 1960s, and it draws on three research projects in which the author has been involved to illustrate why pedagogy and curriculum have again become issues of evident public and political concern and to show some particular points of tension in moving forward today. Issues of curriculum and pedagogy came under challenge in association with new social movements of the 1960s and beyond, and the new emphasis on whose knowledge was being privileged in schooling, and what identities and social patterns were being perpetuated through schooling. Today, in the context of global auditing and benchmarking, and of competitive economic policies and anxieties about migration and citizenship, education is seen by governments as a prominent part of their economic and social policy. But keeping strong attention to both curriculum (or "the what") and the pedagogical relationships (or the process) is rarely attained simultaneously. (Contains 2 notes.)

This article contributes to our understanding of Islamist extremism by examining the relationship between early educational interests and ideas associated with Islamist-jihadist ideology. The article uses data collected through the Islam in Australia survey and specifically compares STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) with HSS (humanities and social science) fields of educational interest in relation to respondents' identification with political Islamist and militant typologies, identification with Islam as a political system, understandings of jihad and views on the caliphate as an Islamic religious obligation. The article found Muslim Australians who expressed an interest in STEM fields at high school were more likely than those interested in HSS to: (1) identify with the political Islamist and militant typology; (2) believe Islam advocates a political system; (3) believe establishing a caliphate is a religious obligation; and (4) define jihad as defensive and offensive rather than as defensive only. As discussed in the article, these findings support those of other research), which have identified an overrepresentation of STEM and an underrepresentation of HSS among Islamist-jihadists. This article adds weight to the assertion that the mindset of Islamist-jihadists, may be present prior to undertaking tertiary education and may predispose some to support extremist ideologies. This paper finds that an Islamist-jihadist ideological orientation has a relationship with the STEM fields broadly and Islamic studies specifically during adolescence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An abundance of research in Indigenous education has not resulted in significant systemic change in relation to Indigenous education in Australia. In this paper we examine convergence and divergence across the policy, practice and research realms with the aim of identifying key sites of opportunity for innovation and change. Through analysing how research and evidence is produced and included/excluded in Indigenous education policy settings, the complexities of how different types of evidence are considered rigorous and relevant were found to be clearly implicated with broader social and political discourses with relation to Indigenous peoples and interests. Whilst we argue for an Indigenous based evidence approach that centres Indigenous agency and solutions, we propose that deeper conversations about Indigenous voice and diversity is needed in implementing such an approach. We re-visit some key policy cycles that resembles the new co-design approach announced by the Australian Government in 2019 and consider the implications based on published literature to date for Indigenous education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Contribution: This paper introduces the real-world limitations and non-technical aspects of power electronics (PEs) projects to students through innovative tutorial activities. Background: Many electrical engineering curricula offer a PE courses (PECs) for third- or fourth-year undergraduate students. Prior research on PEs education mainly focused on improving students’ experimental skills through developing practical experiments, laboratory activities, and problem/project-based learning. An instructional approach that instead employs real-world knowledge and skills is worth evaluating. Intended Outcomes: Students should be able to consider real-world technical and non-technical limitations when applying theory to design PE circuits and converters, and be able to select and carry out appropriate tests to troubleshoot circuits. Application Design: Prior research on engineering education emphasized the importance of introducing real-world limitations to the students as part of their curriculum. This paper suggests that the tutorial activities presented in a PEC can help students acquire skills in designing and troubleshooting a circuit or system according to desired technical aspects, real-world limitations, and available data. Findings: Evidence of the validity of this approach in a PEC at two Australian universities, over four academic years, is provided. Students receiving the new tutorial activities had percentage scores some 10–15 points higher than those who had traditional tutorials. Another evaluation reveals the students’ vibrant participation in the activities during the new tutorial sessions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Focuses on Australian university publications. Choice of performance indicators; Incentive for placement in a prestigious journal.

The abstract to publication ratio (APR) is a measure of the quality of scientific meetings. The aim of the present study was to determine the publication rate of abstracts presented at annual Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Radiologists (RANZCR) conferences, and to identify the publishing journals. All free paper research abstracts (oral or poster) presented by RANZCR radiologists, radiation oncologists and trainees at the four consecutive meetings between 1996 and 1999 were identified retrospectively from conference programmes. The PubMed database ( ) was searched to determine whether or not the abstract had been published as a full paper. Of the 480 free paper research abstracts, 168 (35%) had been published as full articles. The overall abstract to publication ratio for radiology was 29% and for radiation oncology was 41%. Papers were published in a variety of journals but Australasian Radiology accounted for 27%. The mean time between presentation and publication was 16.5 months (median 17 months). These overall abstract to publication ratios are lower than those reported for overseas-based meetings in each respective area. Guidelines to scientific committees could increase the APR by more rigorous selection of abstracts. Future research should look at barriers to the publication of research findings, and identify ways to assist the publication process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent comments by the Federal Education Minister, Alan Tudge, have reignited the socalled history and culture war in Australian schools. Tudge has argued that the newest draft version of the Australian Curriculum is critical of Australia's proud history and does not leave students feeling optimistic about their future in Australia. This paper examines the accuracy of Tudge's claims by carefully placing them within the context of the draft and current version of the Australian Curriculum in relation to History and Civics and Citizenship and also examining them in relation to the history of political involvement in the development of curriculum. By doing so, it demonstrates that Tudge's claims are not founded on an understanding of the content and structure of the curriculum and betray a limited understanding of both the teaching of History and Civics and Citizenship, and the development of curriculum as a whole. The paper concludes with advice for teachers seeking to navigate the troubled waters of curriculum and education at this time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents findings from an investigation of nature-based practices, from the perspectives of 10 academics/educators from six nations. Participants engaged in a focus group exploring the prevalence and inclusion of nature in social work practice and education. While the study focused on individual members' experiences and perspectives, the findings highlight important context-specific factors for including nature within social work to reconnect humans with nature for health, well-being, healing, and justice. An Integrative Environmental Model for social work is proposed to assist future practice and education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes the results obtained for the affective engagement of students with systems thinking (ST). In prior work, the authors have developed and validated a questionnaire instrument for measuring affective engagement of undergraduate engineering students with ST. This paper presents results obtained when the questionnaire was used with undergraduate students. Two surveys with different versions of the questionnaire, one using positive grammar questions only and the other using a mix of positive and negative constructs, were used to measure the students’ engagement with ST and its relationship with gender, age, and work experience. Each questionnaire version was applied to a different sample, the first, 186 participants, completed the positive grammar version, and, the second group of 163 completed the mixed version. The results show that participants in both studies valued ST in each of the three dimensions of the ST construct. Statistical tests confirmed no significant gender differences in either study. Student engagement with the practical dimension of ST was shown to vary, with statistical significance, with groups of age, years of work experience, and country of the university. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Difficulties with understanding research literature can lead to nurses having low engagement with evidence‐based practice (EBP). This study aimed to test the feasibility of an education intervention using an academic literacies approach to improve nurses' research literacy. Methods: An interactive workshop was devised utilizing genre analysis and tested in a pre/post pilot study. EBP self‐efficacy was measured at baseline and posttest using the Self‐Efficacy in Evidence‐Based Practice instrument (26 items on an 11‐point scale for total scores from 0 to 260). Research comprehension was measured with a 10‐question quiz (range 0−10). Results: When analyzed with a paired t‐test, EBP self‐efficacy increased significantly (MD: 56.9, SD: 39.9, t = 4.5, df = 9, p <.001). Research comprehension also improved (MD: 1.1; SD: 1.1, t = 2.9, df 9, p <.01). The workshop evaluations (n = 9) were overwhelmingly positive. Conclusion: This novel approach to research pedagogy aligns well with adult learning theory and social learning theory and is suitable for small group learning in continuing education. There is considerable potential for further work in this area. Genre analysis shows promise as a strategy for teaching nurses to understand research literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the impact on Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) communities in Australia of government and community responses to the coronavirus pandemic of 2019 in the domains of education, employment, housing, social connectedness, and public health communication. Most of the examples are drawn from the state of New South Wales. In Australia, CALD refers to people from countries not classified as main English speaking. Most CALD communities reported in this article are from refugee backgrounds, are recently arrived migrants or do not use English in most of their communication. Inadequate, and in some instances, inappropriate or absent support, adversely impacts CALD communities. We used a multidisciplinary bricolage approach that draws on media, government, and community support publications and concluded that CALD communities experienced heightened pressures due to lower resource availability and poor communication. This led to disruption of support services, exposing gaps and vulnerability. The results reported here challenge Australian government, schools, community agencies, researchers to include proactively CALD community perspectives when planning and responding to such crises in future. Improving communication, pandemic response planning, addressing needs and ensuring participation are key considerations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Young carers support family members affected by disability or a health condition. The Young Carer Bursary Program aims to support young carers' education. This paper analysed data from consenting bursary applicants (2017–2019) to investigate relationships between wellbeing, educational attendance, home study and other factors. Descriptive statistics, correlation and regression analysis determined significant issues, relationships and influential factors related to young carer (N = 1,443) wellbeing and education. Sixty‐eight percent were aged between 13 and 18 years and attended secondary school. One third of the sample reported that they were the main carer in their family and 29% reported receiving no support. Female applicants from single parent households who were the main carer attended educational settings less often. Eighteen percent (n = 267) rated their wellbeing as poor/very poor. Better wellbeing was associated with increased educational attendance (rs = 0.33, p < 0.001) and home study (rs = 0.34, p < 0.001). Wellbeing was associated with main carer status, caring for a parent, having a disability, being older and having few supports. Educational attendance was associated with main carer status, higher care load and fewer supports. Home study was associated with having a disability, caring for a sibling, caring for more than 11 hr per week and having fewer supports. Important factors about the age, life situation and challenges experienced by young carers identified in this paper indicate that further research into preferred supports and effectiveness of the bursary in improving educational engagement is warranted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Despite Australia's history as an exemplary migrant nation, there are gaps in the literature and a lack of explicit conceptualisation of either "migrants" or "migration" in the Australian historiography of schooling. The purpose of this paper is to seek out traces of migration history that nevertheless exist in the historiography, despite the apparent silences. Design/methodology/approach: Two foundational yet semi-forgotten twentieth-century historical monographs are re-interpreted to support a rethinking of the relationship between migration and settler colonialism in the history and historiography of Australian schooling. Findings: These texts, from their different school system (state/Catholic) orientations, are, it is argued, replete with accounts of migration despite their apparent gaps, if read closely. Within them, nineteenth-century British migrants are represented as essentially entitled constituents of the protonation. This is a very different framing from twentieth century histories of migrants as minority or "other". Originality/value: Instead of an academic reading practice that dismisses and simply supersedes old work, this paper proposes that fresh engagements with texts from the past can yield new insights into the connections between migration, schooling and colonialism. It argues that the historiography of Australian schooling should not simply be expanded to include or encompass the stories of "migrants" within a "minority studies" framework, although there is plenty of useful work yet to be accomplished in that area, but should be re-examined as having been about migration all along. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]