Department Of Education And Training Research Articles

Improving access to COVID-19 information by ensuring the readability of government websites.

Issue addressedThis study evaluated the readability of web pages from two public‐facing Victorian government websites that were responsible for communicating key health messages relating to the COVID‐19 pandemic in 2020.MethodsWebpages were downloaded and filtered to identify relevant materials (English language materials containing HTML files that referred to COVID‐19). The files were converted to text files and two Python packages, SpaCy and TextStat were used to obtain the data presented here. In addition to running two well‐established readability tests, SMOG Index (Simple Measure of Gobbledygook) and Flesch Reading Ease formula, we also calculated the figures for sentence length and word length, which drive the readability measures and allow a disaggregated view of the data. Type token ratio measures were conducted as a reflection of the breadth of vocabulary used in the web pages.ResultsDerived measures of text complexity were higher than recommended levels of text complexity for health promotion materials, which are generally set at senior primary school levels. This did not vary depending on the intended audience (public or professional). A senior secondary reading level was required for effective engagement with the text published on both sites.ConclusionsImproving the readability of materials on key government websites where information about COVID‐19 is being communicated to the public, represents a low cost and potentially effective means of improving public understanding of the pandemic and the steps individuals need to take to protect themselves and the community.So what?Given the challenges widely identified in ensuring compliance with protective behaviours, confidence in seeking vaccination and increasing distrust of government, it would be strategic to improve public communication to ensure health messages are simple and readily understood.SummaryThe complexity and readability of text contained in web pages during 2020 from two Victorian government departments were evaluated. Communication regarding the restrictions and the management of risks associated with COVID‐19 was the main focus of these 367 individual web pages from the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) and the Department of Education and Training (DET). Results indicated that across both sites and on both readability measures used, an education level equivalent to senior secondary school would be required to readily understand the contents.

Better in Pictures

Better in Pictures

Preparing Teachers for Rural Appointments


 
 
 
 Education authorities continue to experience difficulty in recruiting and retaining teachers in rural and remote schools. In Western Australia (WA), a state noted for its vastness and number of schools located in rural and remote settings, a scheme developed by the Western Australian Department of Education and Training (DET) and the WA Chamber of Minerals and Energy aims to address this challenge by offering financial support to student teachers who wish to undertake their final practicum in a remote or rural education district in which they hope to work after graduation. The Student Teacher Rural Experience Program (STREP) assists with return travel costs and a weekly stipend for the duration of the practicum. The DET specifies the particular districts to which the STREP will apply and applicants need to satisfy a number of selection criteria. In 2005 a survey involving 2004 and 2005 STREP participants was undertaken to ascertain their opinions about how effective the program was in preparing them to teach in rural locations. This article discusses the quantitative data and participant comments on issues not adequately covered by STREP and how the program might be improved.
 
 
 
 

Sesotho subtitling: a possible vehicle to enhance Grade 12 physical science learning?

ABSTRACTPoor performance in subjects such as mathematics and physical science in basic education is the theme of much discussion. This study explored the use of mother-tongue (in this case Sesotho) subtitling of English language videos on selected themes in the Grade 12 physical science curriculum as a possible vehicle to enhance learning. An empirical investigation was conducted to determine if and how mother-tongue subtitling (of English language videos) affected the comprehension of Grade 12 learners from two former Department of Education and Training (DET) schools. Grade 12 physical science content material was divided into six videos and shown to two groups of participants. One of the two groups (control group) watched the material without subtitles while the second group (experimental group) watched the same material subtitled in Sesotho over a six-week period. The results of the comprehension test that was written after this period indicates statistically significant improvement in the marks of the experimental group.

“When the Wattle Comes Out, the Turtles are Ready”: Success of the Enhanced Teacher Training Program

Teacher preparation and preparedness have been the focus of much research connecting quality teaching and learning, retention, and teacher satisfaction (Halsey, 2005; Hayes, Mills, Christie, & Lingard, 2006; MCEETYA, 2006). The successful recruitment and retention of teachers to rural and remote schools Australia-wide has been problematic for all states and territories (Vinson, 2002). Education departments have implemented a number of immersion programs with success (Halsey, 2005) in order to empower new teachers with the cultural and classroom awareness necessary for teaching in Indigenous communities. In 2006, the New South Wales (NSW) Department of Education and Training (DET) implemented the Enhanced Teacher Training (ETT) scholarship program. This paper reflects on the experiences and retention of the first five teachers to graduate through the UNE ETT scholarship program, three years since successfully entering the teaching profession in indigenous communities in NSW.

Widening Participation in University Learning

This paper reports how one Australian university and the Queensland Department of Education and Training (DET) are working together to increase the number of school students from low socio-economic backgrounds enrolling in undergraduate university degrees. This innovative program involves university lecturers and school teachers working together in the delivery and assessment of four Bachelor of Education units (or subjects) to a cohort of Year eleven and twelve students at a secondary school. Focus group interviews collected data from 26 students, 7 parents, 4 school and 3 university staff to assess the effectiveness of the program. All stakeholders viewed the program as a highly valuable opportunity to experience university learning with 31 high school graduating students being made offers to enter full-time university in the 2010 and 2011. This positive result has particular significance in the current drive in Australia and elsewhere to increase the participation in higher education of young people from under-represented groups.

Widening Participation in University Learning

This paper reports how one Australian university and the Queensland Department of Education and Training (DET) are working together to increase the number of school students from low socio-economic backgrounds enrolling in undergraduate university degrees. This innovative program involves university lecturers and school teachers working together in the delivery and assessment of four Bachelor of Education units (or subjects) to a cohort of Year eleven and twelve students at a secondary school. Focus group interviews collected data from 26 students, 7 parents, 4 school and 3 university staff to assess the effectiveness of the program. All stakeholders viewed the program as a highly valuable opportunity to experience university learning with 31 high school graduating students being made offers to enter fulltime university in the 2010 and 2011. This positive result has particular significance in the current drive in Australia and elsewhere to increase the participation in higher education of young people from underrepresented groups.

Grade Repetition in Queensland State Prep Classes

The current study considers grade repetition rates in the early years of schooling in Queensland state schools with specific focus on the pre-schooling year, Prep. In particular, it provides empirical evidence of grade repetition in Queensland state schools along with groups of students who are more often repeated. At the same time, much of the educational research literature, drawn mainly from the United States, argues that grade repetition has limited, long-term value and may be harmful (Jimerson, 2001, 2004). Little is known about grade repetition rates or the groups of children who may be repeated in Australian schools as almost all research on grade repetition has been done overseas. To better understand grade repetition in Australia, the study draws on data from the Queensland Government's Department of Education and Training (DET), which looks specifically at grade repetition rates in Queensland state schools. While grade repetition rates remain low in Queensland states schools, the possible negative academic, social and emotional consequences for students who are repeated warrants serious re-evaluation of this long-term, early intervention practice in Australian schools. An alternative strategy would include promotion of all students to the next year level with a range of interventions to enable groups of low achieving students meet minimum national standards.

Indigenous Students’ Increasing Risk of Grade Repetition in Early Schooling

The current study considers grade repetition rates in the early years of school, Preparatory (Prep) to Year 3, in Queensland state schools, of which there is a significant gap in the Australian research literature. Data accessed from the Queensland Government's Department of Education and Training (DET), shows that particular groups of students are more at risk of being repeated in the preschool/Prep year. These groups include boys and until recently, non-Indigenous students. However, the most recent data collected in 2009 shows that Indigenous students are more at risk of being repeated in all early years of schooling. As grade repetition has been shown to have limited value, it remains a concern that this intervention practice continues to be offered to students, and in particular Indigenous students, who may already be educationally disadvantaged. While grade repetition rates are low in Queensland state schools, the possible negative academic, social and emotional consequences for students who are repeated warrants serious re-evaluation of this long-term, early intervention practice in Australian schools.

Success Stories from an Indigenous Immersion Primary Teaching Experience in New South Wales Schools

A federal report released by the Department of Families and Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs (FaHCSIA, 2009), entitled Closing the Gap on Indigenous Disadvantage: The Challenge for Australia, highlighted the inequality that exists between Indigenous and non-Indigenous students based on a restricted access to resources, issues of isolation, staff and student retention, and cultural differences and challenges. In New South Wales (NSW), the Department of Education and Training (DET) and the Aboriginal Education Consultative Group (AECG) in 2003/2004 undertook their own review of Aboriginal education in NSW Government schools that revealed significant concerns about the outcomes being achieved by Aboriginal students in NSW DET schools, confirming the more recent FaHCSIA (2009) findings. In 2006 the NSW DET implemented the Enhanced Teacher Training Scholarship Program (ETTSP) to empower 20 final-year education students to successfully engage with Indigenous students in schools and their wider community during their internship period. Using themes, this article explores the experiences of 10 University of New England scholarship holders at the end of their final year of teacher training and immersion/internship experience in 2010. The article puts forward useful recommendations for both teacher universities and students intending to teach in schools with high Indigenous student populations.

Historical Narratives as a Rhetoric of Resistance in Apartheid South Africa: The History Workshop and The New Nation

ABSTRACT This paper analyses the history lessons produced by the History Workshop that were published in the Learning Nation section of The New Nation newspaper between 1986 and 1990. Specifically, I examine the rhetorical dimensions of these historical narratives, which not only provided readers with factual information about the past, but also offered black South Africans a new framework, a new 'conception of reality', to that provided within the Department of Education and Training (DET) schools of the apartheid era. This new framework provided by these historical narratives was significant for two reasons. First, it offered black South Africans alternative ways of understanding and analysing conditions in apartheid South Africa. Second, by examining the heroic acts of resistance by everyday people and prominent leaders in the past, these narratives also sought to provide inspiration and encourage continued acts of resistance during a very violent and fraught period in the anti-apartheid struggle.

Bridging the gap—the oil and gas industry

The oil and gas industry is prone to skills shortages resulting from financial cycles, as is the case with many other industry sectors. Bridging the gap in indigenous employment is in part a solution to this problem and in the Northern Territory this has become easier due to innovative developments and smart partnerships. When smart partnerships are formed that involve like-minded organisations, successful employment outcomes are inevitable. Partnerships, involving APPEA, Industries Services Training Pty Ltd (IST), the Australian Government through the National Shills Shortage Strategy (NSSS), plus the Structured Training and Employment Program—Employment Related Services (STEP ERS), which are funded through the Department of Employment Education and Workplace Relations (DEEWR) and the Department of Education and Training (DET) in the Northern Territory, have provided funding for Indigenous pre—employment training programs that are leading to positive employment outcomes in the oil and gas Industry. The model developed and implemented in the Northern Territory by IST ensures Indigenous employment outcomes follow the delivery of the Indigenous pre-employment training programs. Key factors include: Indigenous mentors; culturally appropriate trainers; Monitoring employment activities; and, Specialist project management from APPEA and IST. Methodologies and strategies employed by various partners ensure employment outcomes through the cooperation of principal subcontractors who require staff and who can service contracts let by major APPEA members. Of the 18 Indigenous and Torres Strait Islander participants who commenced the eight-week program in 2008, 16 graduates received their nationally recognised Statements of Attainment at the graduation ceremony held at the Darwin Convention Centre in October 2008. There were six female graduates of the program. Competencies included first aid, dogging, safe working at heights and OHS including risk and hazard analysis training. You may ask yourself why these courses were so successful when many others have failed. The presentation will outline difficulties; successful methodologies and strategies used by IST to ensure employment outcomes are achieved. These strategies include full-time Indigenous mentors throughout the course plus culturally appropriate trainers, smart recruitment strategies, dedicated employment service brokers soliciting employment opportunities, industry site visits, industry guest speakers and the commitment of Governments and APPEA. As a result of the successes to date, the relevant government departments have committed to further courses throughout 2009.

Beyond a command performance: reflections on Classmates as a new teacher preparation initiative

This paper reflects on a new pre‐service teacher education initiative, Classmates. Classmates is a collaboration between the University of Western Sydney (UWS) and the New South Wales Department of Education and Training (DET), South Western Sydney Region. Classmates aims to prepare pre‐service teachers to work in challenging, hard‐to‐staff schools. These contexts typically have socially disadvantaged populations and annually experience teacher shortages and high teacher turnover, particularly amongst beginning and early career teachers. Classmates seeks to produce beginning teachers who are highly prepared for, confident and mentally and emotionally equipped to work in such environments. This discussion focuses on some of the positive attributes about the initiative, particularly its practicum structure; its nurturing of pre‐service teachers to work in challenging contexts; and its strong focus on networking and development of ongoing support structures.

The Gold Medal Fitness Program: a model for teacher change

Background: Following the 2000 Sydney Olympics, the NSW Premier, Mr Bob Carr, launched a school-based initiative in NSW government primary schools called the Gold Medal Fitness Program to encourage children to be fitter and more active. The Program was introduced into schools through a model of professional development, Quality Teaching and Learning Materials (QTLM), then widely used by the NSW Department of Education and Training. The implementation of the Program was evaluated by a research team at the University of Wollongong for its effects on the fundamental movement skills, self-esteem and participation in physical activity of participating children and its success as a program of professional development for non-specialist primary school teachers. Purpose: This paper describes the component of the evaluation that was designed to determine the use and impact of the Quality Teaching and Learning Materials (QTLM), as an action research-based model of professional development for the Gold Medal Fitness Program from the perspective of the teachers from schools involved in the Program. Participants and setting: Ten government primary schools in New South Wales were identified by the Department of Education and Training (DET) as those to be targeted for the evaluation of the Gold Medal Fitness Program. In each of these schools the teachers who were most involved in the Program, and available at the time a member of the research team visited the school, were interviewed—this ranged from three teachers to most of the staff in some smaller schools. Research design: The research used an evaluation model to examine: (i) the role played by the Program, and specifically the QTLM model of professional development, in increasing teachers' understanding of, and perceived capacity to teach, fundamental movement skills as part of the Personal Development, Health and Physical Education (PDHPE) curriculum; and (ii) teachers' perceptions of the efficacy of the QTLM model. Data collection: The teachers were surveyed at the workshops conducted at the conclusion of the GMFP and interviewed in groups at their schools during the Program. The school portfolios that were a key component of the QTLM approach were also provided by the schools and the DET for analysis. Data analysis: The surveys were analysed using SPSS to provide descriptive statistics and the interviews and portfolios were analysed as they addressed the research aims but also for other themes that emerged from the data. Findings: From the point of view of the schools involved in the Program, the GMFP via the QTLM was a very engaging and successful model of professional development. The professional development workshops generated enthusiasm for the Program. The Program provided materials, experiences and information which developed teachers' ability to teach fundamental movement skills and radically increased their confidence to teach physical education; it enhanced their capacity to program in an organised and sequential fashion; and it provided a context in which these outcomes could be readily communicated and taken up by the whole school. Conclusion: While it is difficult to determine the impact in the long term, the results of the study suggest that from the schools' point of view the GMFP was a very engaging and successful model of professional development; and that students did improve their fundamental movement skills. The research also confirmed other research which suggests that non-specialist teachers need and welcome support in teaching physical education in primary schools.

Learning about teacher professional learning: case studies of schools at work in New South Wales

The extent of the human and financial resources that teachers have access to for their professional development, and the extent to which they have the capacity to determine when, how and with whom learning takes place, are key factors in determining the quality of professional learning that results. The New South Wales Department of Education and Training (DET), as an Australian state education system, is the largest employer of teachers in the southern hemisphere. In 2004 it introduced a 4-year, $144 million program supporting teacher professional learning, and a new policy framework for the area in response to needs identified by teachers and research. This article identifies some of the issues to be resolved in establishing policy frameworks for professional learning. It tells the stories of how schools in a variety of locations throughout the state are going about interpreting the new policy framework, the changes it is making to their practice and the implications that are seen for the immediate future of their professional learning programs. It identifies some of the implications for further research that arise.

Emergent Collectivity: teachers as interdependent e-designers of professional development in K-6 Science and Technology

Communities (including online communities) appear to provide powerful contexts for the professional development of teachers. Yet, despite the apparent educational potency of groups, professional development research has almost exclusively focused on describing and explaining the learning of individuals. In a world where technology supports increasingly sophisticated collectivity within the workplace and beyond, there are compelling reasons for adopting a collective perspective on learning, for exploring the usefulness of new learning technologies in making such a perspective possible and for examining the worth of such an account. The authors take up the challenge of developing a preliminary position on group learning in this article. They describe and analyse aspects of the learning of a group of teachers in the first phase of a professional development project. This project, DESCANT – SciTech, is a large ARCfunded e-learning research and development collaboration between the University of Technology, Sydney and the NSW Department of Education and Training (DET). In so doing, they address the strategic challenge of how to gather data and report stories of group (not just individual) learning, and the conceptual one of how to explain and understand the growth of this professional group. In conclusion, they speculate as to the importance of this first step in developing a contemporary approach to professional (self-) renewal.

The librarians’ pay equity case 2002 — not just a pay rise

On 28 March 2002, the first decision under the Equal Remuneration Principle (re Equal Remuneration Principle (2000) 97 IR 177) was made by the NSW Industrial Relations Commission. Applications were made by three parties, the Public Service Association of NSW (PSA) for a new Crown Employees (Library and Archives Workers All Departments and Administrative Units Award), the Public Employment Office (PEO) with two separate applications, one for a new Crown Employees (Library and Information Workers Award) and one for Crown Employees (Archivists) Award and the fourth application by the Department of Education and Training (DET) for a new Crown Employees (Learning Resource Officers in TAFE Award).

University‐community engagement: exploring service‐learning options within the practicum

Since 1999, pre‐service teachers undertaking the Bachelor of Teaching (Secondary) Program at the University of Western Sydney have participated in an alternate practicum called Professional Experience 3 (PE3). This practicum encourages students to engage in broader educational settings within local communities. Increasingly, a number of service‐learning opportunities have been developed, most notably, senior student tutoring programs and the involvement of students in the Plan‐It Youth project in conjunction with the Department of Education and Training (DET) and the South‐western Sydney Institute of TAFE. A focus of these programs has been to address the issues related to students at risk of leaving school early within the local South‐western Sydney community. In this paper we discuss the benefits of these programs to the university, pre‐service‐teachers, school students and school communities, and the broader local community. Specifically, we examine service learning as a conduit for the development and maintenance of meaningful symbiotic relationships between the university and the educational community, and pre‐service teachers and the local community. Finally, we look towards the future and highlight the challenges and opportunities for service‐learning programs within the practicum.

Two Cubed

Teacher Education needs to move beyond the limitations of existing pre-service and in-service courses. Instead, teacher education should be regarded as a career long process of professional learning 'which takes place prior to and during pre-service, and continues through induction and inservice' (Gore, 1995). An innportaut step in this direction is partnerships between schools and teacher education institutions in initial teacher preparation. Many such partnerships already occur across states and institutions. This paper outlines a rationale for a teacher education course that seeks to achieve a partnership between Charles Sturt University Dubbo and the Department of Education and Training (DET) in NSW within the framework of career long professional learning for teachers.
 The existing political climate with the restructuring of the DET bureaucracy as well as the proposed NSW Institute of Teachers presents a serendipitous moment for the establishment of such a course. The course would follow what the author has termed the 'two cubed' model of teacher education. That is, the fIrst two years of teacher education in the university, followed by two years in school based teacher education (SBTE) with the fmal two years as a begirming teacher mentored by both the training and employing institutions. The initial teacher education course will be the Trojan horse that makes professional learning a formal part of the teaching profession as the interaction between the DET and Charles Sturt University creates professional learning opportunities for existing teachers. This professional learning will be linked strongly to the bioregion of the Murray-Darling Basin, thus addressing both the ecological and social sustainability issues of this region. As well, the qualifIcation gained will be for K-10, addressing the needs of middle school students in central and high schools in the central west of New South Wales.

Exploring Predictors of Academic Success in Psychology I at Wits University as an Important Component of Fair Student Selection

The aim of the present research is to explore empirical predictors of students' performance in the Psychology I course at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg (Wits), within the context of procedural, distributive and interactional fairness. The research is divided into two studies: the first is an archival study examining the use of individual school subject results and the Arts Faculty Ratings (based on school results) as predictors. The second study focuses on the predictive validity of the Arts Faculty Ratings as well as that of various psychometric aptitude tests. In both studies the sample was divided into two groups whereby Group I consisted of primarily white students who had attended private or government schools and were not regarded as educationally disadvantaged; Group 2 comprised of black students who attended Department of Education and Training (DET) schools and were regarded as educationally disadvantaged. Results from both studies show that the Arts Faculty Ratings consistently provide a statistically significant predictor of academic performance in the Wits Psychology I course for educationally non-disadvantaged students. A far less clear picture emerged for the educationally disadvantaged group. The Arts Faculty Rating correlated significantly with overall success in first-year Psychology in the first study, while the Conceptual Reasoning Test was found to be the best predictor for this group in the second study. The implications of the studies for student selection are discussed within a social justice paradigm and future research directions are suggested.