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MERC Conference 07: Education Research and Practice: Futures and Possibilities4th July 2007 – Maton Rooms, Menzies Building, Monash University, Clayton campus. ca,[

Time Events

8.30-9.00 Registration

9.00-9.05 Welcome from MERC – Calvin Taylor (MERC Conference Convenor)

9.10-9.55 SG01 - Annual Invitational LectureSusan Edwards - Education research and practice: futures and possibilities

10.00-11.30 Paper Session 1

SG01 - Professional Learning

1. BasikinTeachers’ Efficacy beliefs among English teachers in Yogyakarta, Indonesia.

2. Hafiz RahmanProfessional learning of junior secondary science teachers in Bangladesh.

3. Jo RechnerTeaching and learning in a different culture.

SG02 - Childhood Studies

4. Ana Cristina MantillaForeign languages in early childhood: Designing a comparative education study using Rogoff’s sociocultural perspective.

5. Hilary MonkFunds of knowledge: a theoretical framework for intergenerational research.

6. Corine M. Patricia RivallandA door to cultural understanding: a socio-cultural/poststructual study.

SG03 - Culture, Lang & Diversity

7. Ying (Barbara) ZhangOral fluency in the eyes of NES and NNES raters.

8. Ying WenThe metacognitive awareness ESP reading comprehension questionnaire: an exploratory study.

9. Calvin TaylorMovement and meaning-making: considerations for researching literacy and mobile technologies.


10. Anita DewiInvestigating shifts in professional identity: case studies of Indonesian EFL educators.

11. . Isti Siti Saleha GandanaExploring the third space: negotiating identities and cultural differences.

12. Victoria FritzeClassics at the crossroads…again: Recent history, present perceptions and future possibilities of senior secondary classics in Victoria.

11.30-12.00 Morning Tea


SG01 - Science, Maths & Technology

13. Anne SuryaniHow is the internet in Indonesia?

14. Ernest Kofi DavisGhanaian basic school teacher trainees’ conception of addition of two unlike fractions


15. Chris Peers & Geraldine BurkeDocumenting early childhood ‘immersions’ in visual art education.

16. Gloria Quiñones & Corine M.P. RivallandWho am I and who do you want us to be?: E.C. professional’s awareness of their “self-concept” in the context of childcare.


17. Miyuki MiyachikaThe implication of Japanese English in ELT.

18. Siautu AlefaioGrowing the heart of the learner – A South Pacific worldview.

SG04 - Work, Learning & Leadership

19. Jane HudsonTraversing the borders between transformative learning and competency based training within industry based VET: a case study.

20. John HaycockRage against the machine: researching the role of protest music in adult learning for social change.

1.00-2.00 Lunch

2.00-3.15 Discussion Panel: Creating and sustaining research cultures. Room?

A varied panel drawn from across the Faculty’s current Research Strengths will examine how research cultures are best created and sustained, and what might be done with them when they do exist. Focus Questions What are the essential factors in creating and sustaining cultures of research? How effective are current frameworks within the Faculty at building the kinds of cultures and relationships that

promote and support quality research? What challenges currently exist and how might these be addressed? What alternative models exist and how might they work in practice? What would it take to make the necessary

changes? How should the relationship between academic staff and graduate students feature in such models? Panel members are strongly encouraged to draw on their personal experiences of different research cultures in order

to critique the current approach in the Faculty. Chair: Prof. Jane Kenway, Associate Dean, Research – What is Research Culture? Why is it important?

Panel membersProfessor Marilyn FleerDr Mary Lou RasmussenDr Ian MitchellProfessor Terri Seddon

3.15-3.30 Afternoon Tea


SG01 - Professional Learning

21. Galuh Nur RohmahMy experience in learning and teaching writing: as a reflection of an ongoing process of writing.

22. Lexie BransParadoxes and the Code of Ethics for Nurses in Australia: implications for teaching nurses ethics.


23. Avis Ridgway“Santa’s buckle” Using a cultural-historical framework to show societal, personal and institutional influences on learning in an Australian early childhood community.

Culture Lang & Diversity24. Diana HasanForeign language anxiety experienced by Indonesian students learning English in Australia.

SG04 - Sport, Health & Outdoor Recreation Studies

Associate Professor Phillip PayneDiscussant.

25. Ian GrinterAn ecological paradigm and new understanding of “interdisciplinarity”.

26. Monica GreenFood gardens: cultivating a pedagogy of place.

4.30-5.00Plenary and summary Room?Susan Edwards

5.00 Drinks – Foyer

MERC CONFERENCE 2007

Education Research and Practice: Futures and Possibilities

July 4, 2007This conference will be held in the Manton Rooms, on the ground floor of the Menzies Building,

primarily rooms SG01, SG02, SG03 and SG04, as well as the Manton Rooms Foyer area.

- General Information -

RegistrationRegistration begins at 8.30am on the day of the conference in the ground floor foyer of the Manton

Rooms, in the Menzies Building (Building 11, Clayton Campus). Throughout the day, last minute sessions, time and/or venue changes, as well as other relevant announcements, will be posted on a message board by the registration desk in the foyer.

Always display you name label please.All participants will receive blank labels to write their names on. Everyone is strongly encouraged

to wear their label throughout the day to facilitate interaction amongst participants.

ParkingParking will be free of charge for all conference participants in the campus blue areas for the entire

day. No permits need to be displayed. The nearest blue carparks are situated to the east of the education building (Building 6).

Conference LunchA mouth-watering conference lunch has been arranged for participants. Food is also available on the

campus at various outlets and at one licensed bistro within the Campus Centre, as well as another licensed bar/bistro below the Matheson Library.

Participant FeedbackSuccessive MERC conference organising sub-committees have benefited over past years from

participant feedback. Likewise, your comments and feedback this year are equally valued and appreciated. A form appropriate for this will be made available in the conference packages or at registration desk. Please take some time at the end of the conference to fill it in before returning it at the end of the final session in the box provided by the registration desk.

If the fire alarm goes off…Should the fire alarm go off, please evacuate the building using the nearest emergency exit or escape

staircase. Do NOT use any lifts or adjacent staircases. Assemble in designated between the School of Law (12), the University Museum of Art (55) and the Menzies Building (11).

If you have any further questions or concerns, please feel free to ask anyone at the reception desk – we are more than willing to assist.

MERC ANNUAL INVITATIONAL LECTURE

Education research and practice: futures and possibilitiesSusan Edwards

Abstract

Engaging in educational research holds the potential to raise any number of questions, from the methodological, theoretical to practice. This presentation examines the research trajectory of an early career researcher and canvasses how initial explorations informing a PhD thesis have evolved into the more detailed and theoretically contextualised investigations characterising the researcher’s current work. How issues associated with the methodologies employed, and the relationship between the theoretical and practical have been negotiated are examined in relation to this trajectory. The process involved in developing an educational research agenda over time and how such an agenda is related to the work conducted within a particular educational community of practice is also explored.

Biodata

Dr Susan Edwards is a Lecturer in early childhood education in the Centre for Childhood Studies at the Faculty of Education, Monash University. Susan graduated with her PhD in 2004 and has since engaged in a number of funded research projects and published her work in key national and international journals and within two edited book collections. Dr Edwards is also the recipient of a prestigious Carrick Citation from the Carrick Institute for Learning and Teaching in Higher Education, Australia. This was awarded in 2006 for the design and implementation of innovative and reflective teaching practices in undergraduate teacher education that motivate, inspire and support student learning.

Creating and Sustaining Research CulturesInvitation to attend a Special Faculty Panel Discussion

Sponsored by MERC

MERC invites all staff and students in the Faculty to attend a special discussion panel exploring the issues around creating and sustaining effective research cultures. This open invitation session will be held as part of the MERC Annual Conference on July 4 in the Manton Rooms of the Menzies Building (room SG01).

A mixed panel drawn from across the Faculty’s current Research Strengths will examine how research cultures are best created and sustained, and what might be done with them when they do exist. Panel members will draw on their wide experience with different research cultures to reflect on current faculty structures and to offer possible ways forward.

Focus Questions:

What are the essential factors in creating and sustaining worthwhile research cultures? How effective are current structures within the Faculty at building the kinds of cultures and relationships

that promote and support quality research? What challenges currently exist and how might these be addressed?

What alternative models exist and how might they work in practice? What role do regular academic staff and graduate students play in such challenges? How can early career

researchers and graduate students be involved in meaningful ways?

Panel members:

Prof Marilyn FleerProf Jane Kenway (chair)Dr Ian Mitchell Dr Mary Lou RasmussenProf Terri Seddon

When: 2.00-3.15pm, Wednesday, July 4, 2007Where: Rm SG01, Manton Rooms, Ground Floor, Menzies Building, Clayton Campus, Monash University.

Look forward to seeing you there,MERC Conference Organising Committee.

MERC CONFERENCE PAPER ABSTRACTSJuly 4, 2007

Each paper presented will be of 20 minutes duration, with 10 minutes question time.

Paper Session 1

SG01- Professional Leadership

10:00am 1. Teachers’ Efficacy Beliefs among English Teachers in Yogyakarta, Indonesia

Basikin

Research suggests that teachers’ efficacy beliefs have effects on teachers’ behaviour in the classroom, attitude about teaching, the way teachers refer to students, the way to cope with problems, and teachers’ burnout. They are also believed to be indicators of students’ behaviour, achievement, motivation, and students’ sense of efficacy. Efficacy construct, however, remains elusive due to adverse contexts significantly responsible to the great variations of teacher efficacy beliefs (Milner & Hoy, 2002). This paper focuses on a part of data on self-efficacy beliefs among 152 secondary school English teachers in Yogyakarta collected using the TSE scale (Tschannen-Moran & Hoy, 2001) and two additional subscales addressing the contextual issues on the Indonesia education system. Reliability in the Indonesian context was high (alpha=.97 overall; alphas= .91, .92, .93, .91, and .94 respectively, for the personal efficacy, efficacy for instructional strategy, classroom management, student engagement, and efficacy for curriculum implementation sub-scales). Results suggest that teachers’ efficacy beliefs are generally high (overall M=4.68 on the 7-point scale; Ms=4.25, 4.76, 5.03, 4.71, and 4.51 respectively for the subscales). Findings are interesting in the context of critics on low student English achievement in this region and implications are suggested in relation to teachers’ continuing professional development.

BiodataMr. Basikin is a Masters by research student in Education Faculty working on teachers’ efficacy beliefs among Secondary school English teachers in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. The research project is currently at the stage of data analysis and report writing.

10:30 am2. Professional Learning of Junior Secondary Science Teachers in Bangladesh.

Hafiz Rahman

Professional learning plays a fundamental role in improving the quality of the science teacher. The quality of the science teacher is a factor to consider when attempting to improve students’ academic achievement in science. There has not been much improvement in science education in Bangladesh in the last three decades after Independence. Fewer than half (48.7%) of the teachers have had any in-service training. In the classroom setting, teaching is theoretical, teacher dominated and textbook oriented. Teachers have limited skills in helping students to see the links between theoretical discussions and real life science situations. In most cases, teachers lack the pedagogical knowledge and skills required to facilitate meaningful learning. In this situation a learner-centred and enquiry based teaching learning approach is essential. At this early stage of my research work I wish to identify the present status and quality of professional learning of junior secondary science teachers in Bangladesh. Then I would like to suggest some interventions that may be workable in our context so that teachers can find their way to develop more effective teaching-learning approaches.

BiodataHafiz is Assistant Professor of science education at the Institute of Education and Research (IER), University of Dhaka, Bangladesh. Recently he commenced his PhD on science education in the faculty of Education, Monash University. His PhD research is on Professional Learning of secondary science teachers in Bangladesh. He is also interested is assessment in Education. He involved in a study sponsored by UNESCO for improving learning assessment practices to ensure quality of primary education in Bangladesh. Recently, his work on open investigation in practical work and science teachers’ belief has been accepted for publication.

11.00 am 3. Teaching and Learning in a Different Culture

Jo Rechner

My research project is based on my experiences as a new graduate teacher. In my first year of teaching I taught in a school in Hungary for two and a half months and I found the experience to be a rich and profound part of my professional learning. This study will investigate my personal and professional reflections and insights of that experience from drawing on journal entries, photographs, stories, restorying (generation of original stories), collected curriculum artefacts and my own memory. Douglas Barne’s (1976) notion of curriculum as ‘communication’ is an important frame for this study. Using this frame my project is exploring my developing understanding of the nature of curriculum (as in this international experience), students learning (how students learn in different curriculum’s in different countries), and professional learning (how teachers construct different notions of curriculum and why).

BiodataCurrently, full-time Honours, Monash University. New Graduate Teacher (Secondary) 2006, worked 2 and ½ months in Hungary, teaching English. Returned to Australia, teaching English. Completed Diploma of Education, Monash 2005, Bachelor of Arts (Drama/Dance) Rusden, Deakin University, 2001. Worked Bialik College 3 years.

SG02 – Childhood Studies

10.00 am

4. Foreign Languages in Early Childhood: Designing a Comparative Education Study Using Rogoff’s Sociocultural Perspective

Ana Cristina Mantilla

This presentation is based on a project that aims to identify the regularities of the teaching arrangements through which young majority language children are learning foreign languages [hereafter FL] in Australia and Colombia. This comparative education study will use qualitative methods for data collection and analysis, including videotaping a FL classroom in a school setting of each community, interviewing teachers, and analysing the activities that they set up using Rogoff (1995)’s three lenses of analysis. The author will explain Rogoff’s sociocultural transformation of participation perspective and how it frames the research project to support the investigation of FL development in early childhood, clarifying why this perspective is different from the emerging sociocultural theory used in SLA. The author will also summarize some of the current research gaps (e.g. prevalence of research on children learning ESL, lack of comparative education studies in SLA and early childhood education, lack of studies on FL education in early childhood, etc.) and highlight the importance of undertaking empirical research that acknowledges “what language teachers themselves bring to the process of language teaching” (Cross, 2006, p. 31) and “describe[s] what exists presently in the classroom” (Tardiff, 1994, p. 467) across diverse populations include non-western middle-class groups.

Keywords: Sociocultural theory, foreign language education, early childhood.

BiodataAna Cristina Mantilla is a second-year doctoral student from Colombia.

10.30 am 5. Funds of knowledge: a theoretical framework for intergenerational research

Hilary Monk

The knowledge held by families and extended households has been theorized by Moll and Greenberg (1990) in a concept they name funds of knowledge. Within this concept the knowledge shared in and through families/households forms the basis of their economic, political and social platforms. Originating with the work of anthropologists studying how social networks thrive and survive, the notion of funds of knowledge has been developed and modified for use in the fields of education and educational research particularly with Latino-Americans. This paper considers the use of the funds of knowledge concept as a framework for intergenerational research in Australasia. The work of Moll and his colleagues is examined alongside aspects of Vygotsky’s (1987) socio-cultural theory both of which inform the direction of the proposed intergenerational research. The focus of the study will be the values and beliefs that families/households hold, and how they are transferred and transformed intergenerationally. Some of implications surrounding the use of the funds of knowledge framework are identified and discussed.

Keywords: Intergenerational research, sociocultural theory.

BiodataHilary Monk is a PhD student from New Zealand based at Peninsula in her first year of candidature.

11.00 am

6. Reaching Cultural Understanding During Transition Time In Childcare: Sociocultural/Poststructural AnalysisCorine M Patricia Rivalland

There are countless opportunities to research the ‘multicultural’ experience during transition time in early childhood. Transitions times are defined as: the discourses in which families and educators engage in negotiation while transferring the power of care of their child (ren) from the family to the early childhood professional and vice versa at the beginning and end of the childcare session. This study is framed within a qualitative case study approach with an emphasis on social constructivism and proposes a hybridised methodological perspective, which draws on socioculturalism and poststructuralism to investigate the negotiation of cultural meaning during transition times in childcare. While this study explores, as a broad question, the negotiation of cultural meaning through active participation between educators and ‘multicultural’ parents during transition times, it also looks at the struggles, strategies and the discursive power relationships at play during these encounters. And as a result, conveys a more holistic understanding of the complex phenomenon of negotiating cultural meaning in childcare.

Keywords: Early Childhood Education, Foucault, Poststructuralism, Sociocultural and Activity Theory, Multiculturalism

BiodataCorine M P. Rivalland is a second-year PhD student at the Faculty of Education (Peninsula).

SG03 – Culture Language & Diversity

10.00 am 7. Oral Fluency in the Eyes of NES and NNES Raters

Ying (Barbara) Zhang

This paper tries to provide empirical evidence to the vague interpretation of oral fluency in language assessment by exploring the oral fluency features perceived by both native English speaking (NES) raters and Non-native English speaking (NNES) raters when they evaluate the candidates’ performance in CET-SET, a national oral English test to university students in China. Both NES and NNES raters will be investigated as native-like fluency is a key term in defining and assessing oral fluency and oral fluency is assessed by the listener’s perception of it. The theoretical and operational definitions of oral fluency and its component features explored by various researchers based on their research of fluency to L1 and L2 learners and language assessment will also be discussed. The tentative results may help teachers in the diagnostic analysis of individual learner weaknesses and strengths in oral performance, prompt some reflection as to whether such features can be built into the teaching of oral proficiency in L2, and provide small evidence of the debate on native norms in the L2 learning and assessing.

Keywords: oral fluency, oral performance, oral proficiency, Spoken English Test of College English Test (CET-SET), NES rater, NNES rater

BiodataYing Zhang (Barbara) has been teaching at Tianjin Normal University, China since 1991. She is now the PhD candidate in TESOL at the Faculty of Education, Monash University. Her research interests include language teaching, teacher education and language testing.

10.30 am8. The Metacognitive Awareness ESP Reading Comprehension Questionnaire: An Exploratory Study

Yin Wen

This paper describes the development of an ESP (English for Specific Purposes) reading comprehension questionnaire designed to assess second language (L2) readers’ metacognitive awareness and self-perceived problems while reading ESP texts. The process of questionnaire item construction, data collection, and the results of data analysis will be reported, along with a review of the relevant literature related to L2 readers’ ESP reading comprehension. An exploratory factor analysis of the responses from 270 Taiwanese nursing undergraduates was conducted. The results revealed that the reading problems perceived by the students in reading ESP texts could be collapsed into four factors, labelled subject content, complex sentence and vocabulary, specialist terminology, and simple sentence, ranking from the most difficult to the least in order. Moreover, through the analysis of variance, the students’ attitude and motivation, self-perceived English proficiency, and learning styles were also found to have an impact on their evaluation of the self-perceived reading problems.

Keywords: ESP (English for Specific Purposes) reading comprehension, reading problems

BiodataYing Wen has been working as an English teacher at the National Taipei College of Nursing (NTCN) since 1992. Presently, she is a PhD student in TESOL at Monash University, Australia.

11.00 am 9. Movement & Meaning-Making: considerations for researching literacy and mobile technologies

Calvin Taylor

Mobile technologies are becoming an increasingly important part in the everyday lives, not just of youth, but of many people in post-industrial societies, changing the social practices of individuals and groups. As young people, particularly adolescents, are one of the largest consumer groups for these devices, mobile phones, iPods and PSPs, have already made their way into schools and classrooms. However, at the same time, research into how to use these technologies for learning purposes is still in its infancy. This research seeks to investigate the potential of these technologies for learning, through an examination of current adolescent literacy practice where mobile devices are concerned. However, research in this area is complicated by a concept of ‘movement’ that pervades the field. This concept of ‘movement’ relates to mobile technologies on a number of levels: physical, social, virtual, theoretical and methodological movements affect research into how these devices are used in everyday social practice. This paper seeks to unpack and examine some of these complications in the light of on-going ethnographic research into how young people use mobile technologies as part of their social practice, and how we can understand this in terms of the literacy practices they engage in. A research design will be outlined which aims to account for the complexities raised by movement, as it tries to understand the lived experiences of secondary students with regard to mobile technologies. Still, questions and complexities continue to emerge from this research, which is itself moving, searching for answers.

BiodataAfter completing a Bachelor of Arts (with Honours) and Bachelor of Teaching (with Honours) at the University of Tasmania, I taught at rural secondary schools in Victoria for a number of years. I developed a fascination with technology and related literacy practices, which form the focus of my current PhD work.

SG04- Culture language & Diversity

10.00am10. Investigating shifts in professional identity: case studies of Indonesian EFL educators

Anita Dewi

There have been studies on topics related to teacher identity (Beijaard et al., 2004; Bauer & McAdams, 2004; Varghese et al., 2005), however, these researchers do not examine the shift in professional identity of Non-Native English Speaking Teachers (NNESTs). Thus, this research-based paper is aimed at filling this gap. This study, which is my M.Ed. thesis at Monash University, explores the shift of professional identity of Indonesian English as a Foreign Language (EFL) educators currently studying at Monash University, particularly the influence of English language and cultural immersion on how these people perceive themselves prior to returning to Indonesia. Specifically, this study examines the identity formation of NNESTs; what professional identities Indonesian EFL educators bring with them, the identity changes during the period of their studies at Monash University whether there is a professional identity shift happening for these people within the time range of arriving in, staying in, and leaving Australia, and influences on identity transformation.

Keywords: Professional identity

BiodataBorn as a Javanese, Anita spent her life in Yogyakarta, except for 1 year as an exchange student in the USA. She gained bachelor degrees and a master degree, and ran a profitable business before deciding to become an English teacher. She is now a staff of CILACS Universitas Islam Indonesia, taking M.Ed. TESOL International under Ausaid scholarship.

10.30 11. Exploring the Third Space: Negotiating Identities and Cultural Differences

Isti Siti Saleha Gandana

This paper is based on a qualitative study that investigated processes of identities formation and negotiation in the third space and how they influence the participants' sense of self. Specifically, the study traces, through narrative inquiry, the experiences of border crossing of two people from different cultural backgrounds, examines the challenges they encountered, the ways in which they negotiated cultural differences and how they enacted their identities in the new space. Through an interpretative approach the participants' stories identified patterns that can be seen as indicating re-conceptualization of identity. These individual cases are expected to provide a basis for entering into and understanding larger social structures.

BiodataI am a lecturer at the English Department of Indonesia University of Education, specializing in the subjects of cultural studies and literature. I am currently pursuing a masters degree at the Faculty of Education at Monash University in Australia through the sponsorship of Australian Development Scholarship, conducting research on identity and culture.

11.00am

12. Classics at the crossroads…again: Recent history, present perceptions and future possibilities of senior secondary Classics in Victoria

Victoria Fritze

Since the late C19 Classics has gone from mainstream to niche status within the curriculum. Currently under VCAA review it is at a crossroads again. Focussed on VCE Classical Societies and Cultures my research is located within a changing educational landscape encompassing the state of Classics education at home and abroad, current education policy and contemporary discourse surrounding curriculum. As a small discipline, Classics has been largely shielded from public debate but the review provides a catalyst for reflection on the variety of educational possibilities within the contemporary Classics. As a participant researcher, I bring a transformative lens developed by social construction and critical pedagogy as well as my own ‘insider’ experience, to the study. Working as a ‘meso level actor’ my aim is to facilitate debate about the nature, purpose and sustainable future of Classics education more broadly by: exploring the micro- processes of the construction of senior secondary Classics in Victoria over the past 30 years; interpreting the experience of teaching and learning Classics from the perspectives of teachers and students; and introducing, in an iterative design, insights from the research into the review process and a variety of public fora.

BiodataFor the past 15 years I have worked in the VCE department at the CAE teaching Classical Societies and Cultures. I also work for the VCAA as assessor, study writer and professional development provider. Apart from Classics my other interests include Urban studies, sustainable living, reading, food, cats and yoga.

Paper Session 2

SG01- Science Maths & Technology

12.00 pm

13. How is the Internet in Indonesia?Anne Suryani

This paper is a part of a larger research study investigating new media ownership and Internet usage among Indonesian students before and while studying in Australia. This paper discusses the complexity of mapping Internet usage in Indonesia, describes findings from previous new media research, and explores new media usage following a transition into a new cultural and educational context. The study is particularly focused on Indonesian students who are currently study in Australian universities a situation that places them in new social, cultural and educational contexts which is very different. For instance, 70.2% of the population in Australia are Internet users while that figure is just 8% in Indonesia. Even though some researchers find that most students access the Internet for communication and entertainment purposes, I use questionnaires and in-depth interviews with selected participants to examine how Indonesian students use the new media and the Internet in relation to their academic activities in Australia.

BiodataAnne Suryani is a lecturer at Communication Department, Faculty of Social and Political Sciences, University of Indonesia. Her research interests focus on interpersonal communication, cross cultural communication, new media and education.

12.30am

14. Ghanaian Basic School Teacher Trainees' Conception of Addition of Two unlike FractionsErnest Kofi Davis

This presentation reports on a study which sought to identify some of the sources of the problems associated with the teaching and learning of fractions in Ghana. In particular, it investigated pre-service teacher trainees’ conception about addition of two unlike fractions. The study made use of documentary evidence, in which stratified random sampling procedure was used to select 116 scripts of pre-service teacher trainees (from three out of 42 teachers’ colleges) who attempted a question on addition of two unlike fractions. Data collected has been analysed qualitatively by looking at trainees’ explanations of the process involved in such additions. Results from the study revealed that quite a number of the prospective teachers had weak conception about the addition of two unlike fractions. The implication here therefore is that it seems some basic school teachers in Ghana start teaching with weak knowledge of addition of two unlike fractions.

BiodataI am a first year full time PhD student studying under the supervision of Dr. Wee Tiong Seah and EM Prof. Alan Bishop. I come from Ghana, in West Africa. Mathematics education is my area. I have research interest in issues relating to Mathematics teaching and learning.


12.00 pm 15. Documenting early childhood ‘immersions’ in visual art education

Chris Peers & Geraldine Burke

Documentary cinema has made rare but valuable incursions in the domain of visual art education over the past few decades in Australia. Peers (2002) has documented one of the oldest such cinematographic artefacts, known as Approach to Art Teaching, which was produced by the Commonwealth government in 1960. Other similar documentary productions are currently under examination for use in specialist pre-service teacher education courses offered within the Faculty of Education at Monash. The present proposal broadens the parameters of Peers’ research through collaboration with Burke (2007a; 2007b) whose ongoing study of ‘immersion’ based visual art education for early childhood students is the basis for a proposed documentary. The collaboration seeks to identify the conceptual and strategic boundaries of Burke’s approach for the purpose of developing new pedagogies for visual art education as it is offered within the Early Childhood program at Monash. It additionally contributes to other studies of the application of documentary film-making to research about pre-service teacher education.

BiodataChris Peers is a lecturer in Visual Arts Education at Monash, whose research examines the historical and conceptual underpinnings for art pedagogy. Geraldine Burke is a lecturer in Visual Arts Education at Monash whose doctoral research is an investigation of ‘immersive’ art pedagogy and practice.

12.30 pm 16. Who am I and who do you want us to be?: Early childhood professional’s awareness

of their “self-concept” in the context of childcareGloria Quiñones & Corine Rivalland

In this paper we will be exploring the role of ‘self concept’ and its impact on early childhood professional's work. Hinde and Aughen (1997) suggest that one holds an image of oneself and an image of how others perceive one self. Furthermore, Hinde, Finkenauer and Auhagen (2001) argue how “the self exists both in the person’s own head and in the intersubjective world in which one person is immersed” (p.189) We conducted two qualitative research projects and interviewed six early childhood professionals from two long day care centres. These interviews allowed us to explore how these professionals perceived and articulated their understanding of “self-concept” within the childcare centre and within society. The findings suggest that differences exist between how these professionals view themselves, and how they believe they are viewed by society. As a result of our analysis, we believe the notion of “self-concept” is an important factor to consider in rebuilding the image of the profession. Keywords: Self-concept, early childhood professional

BiodataGloria Quiñones is from Monterrey, Mexico. She is working as a Researcher in the Centre of Childhood Studies in the Faculty of Education, Monash University.Corine M Patricia Rivalland is PhD student from Mauritius.

SG03 – Culture, Language & Diversity

12.00 pm 17. The Implication of Japanese English in ELT

Miyuki Miyachika

In the current era of globalisation, English language has been widely recognised as an international language. With its global spread, even though the Japanese version of English has not yet achieved the status of a distinct English variety, the Japanese have also established their unique way of using English words and phrases, and this plays an important role in social communication between the Japanese. In this presentation, it is argued that ‘Japanese English’ is an important marker of new times in contemporary Japan. The analysis of the views of four Japanese international teacher-students in Australia reveals how the use of Japanese English relates to their construction of professional and personal identities. ‘Japanese English’ relates to Japanese identity in several aspects, therefore taking into account the position of JE in ELT is an important step. Nevertheless, how English teachers cope with JE in the future depends on the direction of English education itself and Japanese language itself.

BiodataI learned my Bachelor of Arts in Japanese Literature and Letters from Kansai University, in 2003 and my M Ed TESOL International degree from the Faculty of Education, Monash University in 2005. Currently I am pursuing my doctoral studies in the Faculty. I also work as a volunteer teacher in the Japanese Bilingual primary school in Huntingdale.

12.30 pm18. Growing the Heart of the Leaner – A South Pacific Worldview

Siautu Alefaio

“World views are best understood as we see them incarnated, fleshed out in actual ways of life. They are not systems or thought, like theologies or philosophies. Rather, world views are perceptual frameworks. They are ways of seeing. If we want to understand what people see, or how well people see, we need to watch how they walk”. (Walsh and Middleton, 1984). The world-view of Pacific nations which lie within the vast ocean of the South Pacific is yet to be uncovered in the world of psychology. It is vital that their unique perspectives are sought and their voices heard. The unearthing of this raw material will contribute and enrich our understanding of diversity, and help to unite our region with an identity uniquely our own. Policy development in New Zealand and Australia with regards to the vast population growth of Pacific people in these countries will be better informed. The proposed research aims to: Begin the journey of understanding the heart of Pacific people. Identify key values and beliefs that inform the current way of life in the home-lands. What these values and beliefs look like in the context of human-development.

BiodataAs a registered psychologist I have been trained and worked across both clinical and educational psychology settings. My heart and experiences have always been rooted and grounded within the community; it is with this passion that I endeavour to work to the best of my ability in achieving a way forward in Psychology that encompasses values and beliefs of the South Pacific community.

SG04 Work Learning & Leadership

19. Traversing the borders between transformative learning and competency based training within industry based VET: a case study

Jane Hudson

Since the Training Reform Agenda in the 1990's there has been criticism and concern that vocational education and training (VET) policy is overly informed by industry needs, taking a narrow, technicist pathway with the learning process becoming the 'poor cousin' in a system that emphasises learning outcomes in the form of pre-determined competency standards. There have also been positive outcomes with the move from a provider-led to an industry-led VET system eg VET providers have become more responsive to employers needs and qualification pathways have opened up to workers who previously had little access to structured training. In this case study I share my experiences in trying to develop a transformative learning and development program within the constraints of a competency-based qualification: the Diploma of Government (Investigation). I will examine some key challenges facing VET providers. How can training providers use training packages to address current (and potentially future) organisational and individual learning needs? Is it possible to traverse the borders between competency-based training and transformative learning?

BiodataJane has worked in adult education since 1994 in a variety of community, business and public sector contexts. Her qualifications include the Certificate IV in Training and Assessment, Diploma of Assessment and Training Systems and a Bachelor of Adult Learning and Development. Jane is currently undertaking a Master of Education by research at Monash University.

12.30 pm

20. Rage against the machine: Researching the role of protest music in adult learning for social changeJohn Haycock

Protest music, a genre of popular music, is a prominent cultural form in contemporary mass culture, and a distinctive component of the social and cultural history of the last half century. But has protest music “changed the world” and can it in future? The popular mass media propagated myth, or what Everyman and Jamison (1998, p.2) describe as the “’sixties’ of popular consciousness”, seems to suggest it can and has. Yet for all its assumed power as a medium for political protest and social change, its educative role and potential as a counter-hegemonic text for learning about and for processes of social change remains under-researched and poorly understood. Given the overtly political nature of protest music and its putative influence in and on social movements, this lacuna is rather surprising. This paper, accompanied by a multimedia presentation of sound and vision, is based on a review of research for my postgraduate thesis. It seeks to develop a conceptual framework for understanding the role of protest music in learning for social change, through an analysis of political and socio-cultural theory and research on the transformative potential of protest music in radical pedagogy and adult learning.

Biodata John Haycock is a postgraduate research student at Monash University, and teaches information technology and multimedia studies in TAFE. His research interests focus on cultural diversity, marginalised young adult learners, VET pedagogy, and education for social change. He is currently researching the use of popular music to develop learners’ skills in critical literacy for social change.

Paper Session 3

SG01- Professional Learning

3.30 pm

21. My experience in learning and teaching writing: as a reflection of an ongoing process of writing.Galuh Nur Rohmah

The complexities of English writing skill have challenged my professional identity as a teacher to be able to facilitate the students with effective teaching approach. Regarding with this, during my teaching career, I have experienced of teaching using different approaches. Firstly, as a novice teacher of English writing, I mostly teach like what I had been taught (using product approach), then, as my professional development grows I begin to learn that writing is not just simply oriented to the product, but it should involve drafting, writing, and revising. Therefore, I shift my teaching strategy into process approach in which writing is seen as a recursive process. Feel that there is another effective way to improve students’ writing skill, I transform into autonomous writing instruction.In my research I use narrative inquiry, autobiographical writing, to explore my experience of how I learn to write and then how I teach others (students) to write in English. By writing my autobiography about my learning and teaching experiences, I believe that it makes contribution to me and other EFL teachers in conjunction with being awareness of the importance of our pasts as a part of self-reflection and self-critic. Moreover, the exploration on my day-to-day experiences will be used as an ‘intellectual resource’ (Kooy, 2006) for me and other EFL practitioners to make better teaching performance.

Biodata Galuh Nur Rohmah is currently a lecturer at Department of English Letters and Language-Islamic State University of Malang. She is pursuing Master degree at TESOL-International. Her areas of interest are Bilingual education and EFL teaching and learning.

4.00 pm

22. Paradoxes and the Code of Ethics for Nurses in Australia: implications for teaching nurses ethicsLexie Brans

The framework for professional nursing practice in Australia includes the Code of Ethics for Nurses in Australia (the Code) and the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Council’s National Competency Standards for the Registered Nurse (the competencies). In order to obtain and retain a license to practice, a Registered Nurse must demonstrate that she is competent in all 10 competencies. Number 2.1 states that a Registered Nurse 'Practices in accordance with the nursing profession's code of ethics and conduct.' The Code then becomes de-facto teaching policy. Within the Australian higher education and health care systems, the Code functions at the strategic, operational (also regulatory) and clinical levels of policy making. Paradoxically, the literature indicates that the Code succeeds at the regulatory level, but is dysfunctional at the clinical level. I will argue that this has far reaching and profound implications for teaching ethics to nurses. Using the Value Statements in the Code itself I will analyse some of the reasons for this paradox and then suggest some necessary changes to the teaching of nursing ethics. My analysis will emphasise workplace learning, making my comments relevant to the purposes of Codes of ethics in many professions, not only the nursing profession.

Biodata Ms Lexie Anne Brans FRCNA. Lexie is a registered nurse and midwife with an extensive background in nursing education and clinical nursing practice. She has a Master’s degree in Bioethics and she is a Fellow of the Royal College of Nursing, Australia (FRCNA). She has an adjunct position at the School of Human and Biomedical Sciences at the University of Canberra, and is a consultant to the Nursing and Midwifery Board of the Australian Capital Territory.

SG02- Childhood Studies

3.30 pm

23. ‘Santa’s Buckle’ Using A Cultural-Historical Framework to Show Societal, Personal and Institutional Influences On Learning in an Australian Early Childhood Community

Avis Ridgway

Vygotsky’s (1978) cultural-historical theory provides a theoretical framework for the idea that learning and understanding are social in origin. Cultural-historical psychology suggests human activity takes place in local cultural systems mediated through language, materials and artifacts (Wertsch 1985, Hedegaard 2005). Hedegaard’s model of learning and development (2005) builds on Vygotsky’s theorizing, bringing into a dialectical relationship societal, biological and institutional influences and practices with motives and values. How can we gain understanding of the cultural-historical influences of institutional practice in early childhood? This presentation relates to the beginnings of doctoral research into an early childhood site.In seeking answers to the question of ‘how does the early childhood institution shape what is possible for children?’ the study of a local cultural system has begun by examining in detail, the mediation affordances of a cultural- historical artifact and its relative significance for institutional tradition, motivations and values of staff, children and families. Through a methodology involving the use of historic documentation, images, and audio and video interview analysis, the author draws upon the chance discovery of a historically situated artifact, (Santa’s buckle) to show how and why cultural-historical influences can shape learning in an institutional setting.

BiodataAvis Ridgway is an associate of the Faculty of Education Monash University, currently involved in field research for the ARC Science and Play research project (2005-2007), an honorary life member of the Reggio Emilia Australia Information Exchange) and a PhD student in the Centre for Childhood Studies, Peninsula Campus.

Culture, Language & Diversity

4.00 pm 24. Foreign Language Anxiety Experienced by Indonesian Students Learning English in Australia

Diana Hasan

This study investigated the phenomenon of foreign language anxiety experienced by Indonesian students studying English in Australia prior to their university studies. This research identified factors that may cause anxiety, described the manifestation of anxiety and found out anxiety coping strategies used by the students. The research utilized Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale developed by Horwitz, Horwitz and Cope (1986) and in-depth interview to collect data. Findings suggested that there were five sources of foreign language anxiety: restricted belief about language learning, personal- interpersonal issues, classroom procedures, instructor-learner interaction, and test. The feeling of anxiety was manifested physiologically and behaviourally. The anxiety coping strategies employed by the students fell into 5 categories, namely preparation, relaxation, positive thinking, peer seeking and avoidance. No significant relationship was found between language anxiety and frequencies of strategies by the students. This study suggested the need for further research to investigate the effectiveness of anxiety coping strategies in relation to sources of anxiety.

BiodataLecturer of Bung Hatta University, Padang West Sumatera Indonesia since 2000. Completing Master of Lingustics, (2000) from University of Indonesia, Jakarta.

SG04 – Sport, Health & Outdoor Recreation Studies

3.30pmDiscussant for the session -Associate Professor Phillip Payne

25. An Ecological Paradigm and New Understandings of ‘Interdisciplinarity’Ian Grinter

In the 1960s and 1970s the international scientific community called for education to be a significant part of a global response to an impending, alleged, environmental crisis. It also insisted that such education, to be an effective part of this response, needed to be interdisciplinary. This referred to developing strong links between different disciplines of knowledge, or educational subject areas.Theorists within the ‘critical’ and ‘socially critical’ discourses of environmental education have continued the call for interdisciplinarity. They have also identified a so-called ‘Scientific Paradigm’ as the predominant working assumption of Western society, and at the root of the environmental crisis. Consequently they have called for the development of an alternative ‘ecological’ paradigm. The Researcher is now developing new understandings of ‘interdisciplinarity’ more appropriate to an Ecological Paradigm of education and society. These new, possibly ‘transdisciplinary’ understandings incorporate ‘disciplines of identity and relationship’, identified as Body, Gender, Culture, and Narrative. The development of new understandings of ‘interdisciplinarity’ is in response to a recognition, in the ‘critical’ and ‘socially critical’ discourses, of a tendency towards fragmentation of knowledge, relationship, and human identity within the Scientific Paradigm, contributing to the ‘environmentally problematic human condition’ and the consequent environmental crisis.

BiodataMy academic background is in Mathematics, Physics, History and Philosophy of Science, and Education. I have taught in the secondary education system and currently I am teaching in the TAFE system, in the fields of Engineering and Electronics. I am also currently doing doctoral research in environmental education and religious studies.

4.00pm26. Food gardens: Cultivating a pedagogy of place

Monica Green

Place-based education provides a creative alternative to the nationalised school curriculum agenda particularly through food gardens and ecological restoration projects in schools. Many of these places are located in and around the immediate environment of a school ground and become educational portals through which children explore their world. In this paper I will report on the literature reviewed for a study on how pedagogies of place are cultivated within garden experiences. There is little research about the use of school gardens as an educational tool and the pedagogies that support learning in this context. There are a number of themes that emerge from various bodies of literature that provide a conceptual framework for the study of school garden pedagogies. These themes include ecological literary, nature as teacher and garden as place. It is useful to think about primary school gardens in the light of this literature because it helps frame a research question for a study into how pedagogies of place can be cultivated within food gardens.

BiodataMonica is currently enrolled as a part-time PhD student at Monash Gippsland. She also teaches part-time in Education and in the Bachelor of Sport and Recreation program.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTSMonash University

The MERC conference subcommittee wishes to thank the following people:

Susan Edwards for her invitational lecture and for chairing the plenary concluding the conference.

The members of the Discussion Panel, Marilyn Fleer, Mary Lou Rasmussen, Ian Mitchell and ___________, and the chair, Jane Kenway.

Rosemary Viete for organising the catering and assisting with the registration packages

Mayur Katariya for his support with the conference logistics and publicity

Tania Bull for her work keeping the MERC Website up to date

Marie-Ange Malherbe for her assistance with conference stationery

All faculty staff and students who have presented papers, or encouraged their students to present papers, which makes this event possible

All other faculty staff and students who have helped in any way at all to make this event possible, or who have shown interest in the event by attending a meeting

MERC CONFERECE SUBCOMITTEE 2007

Calvin Taylor (Conference Convenor)

[In alphabetical order]

Scott BulfinRenee ChongHongming Ma

Ana Cristina Mantilla Hilary Monk

Gloria Quiñones Jo-Anne Rechner

Corine M. Patricia Rivalland Jessamin Mison Smith

Ying WenYing Zhang

merc conference paper abstracts - monash.edu€¦ · web viewthis paper focuses on a part of data...

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