{"title":"Positioning the notion of group in children’s learning: an Australian study","authors":"Karen Guo, Andrea Nolan, Carole Lanting","doi":"10.1007/s13384-024-00726-z","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s13384-024-00726-z","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Current research and literature emphasize the crucial role of group experiences in children’s learning during early childhood. However, despite the frequent use of the term ‘group’, little attention has been paid to its position in children’s learning and the diverse perspectives that inform it. This study addressed this gap by applying a tri-partite lens, considering the perspectives of young children, parents and teachers in three preschools in Australia. We defined group broadly as any social context within preschool environments. Data were collected through focus group discussions with 24 children, individual interviews with six teachers and questionnaires completed by 48 parents in the preschools. The findings have conceptualised group as a complex interweaving of various elements, involving the dynamic tensions and relationships between children’s needs and adults’ expectations and practices. Central to this is the exploration of self and others, and an understanding of how children's desires for togetherness and belonging could stimulate thinking about what it means to be learning in groups.</p>","PeriodicalId":501129,"journal":{"name":"The Australian Educational Researcher","volume":"16 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-06-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141507416","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Ellen Larsen, Georgina Barton, Kristina Turner, Susie Garvis
{"title":"Enablers and constraints to teacher educator wellbeing amidst institutional accountability cultures: a PERMA perspective","authors":"Ellen Larsen, Georgina Barton, Kristina Turner, Susie Garvis","doi":"10.1007/s13384-024-00738-9","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s13384-024-00738-9","url":null,"abstract":"<p>The work of contemporary teacher educators in university contexts is under increasing political and public scrutiny as the focus on Initial Teacher Education (ITE) reform intensifies. Consequently, there are growing concerns for teacher educators’ wellbeing amidst escalating expectations and pressures. While research has explored the wellbeing of university academics more generally, less is understood about teacher educators more specifically. This paper aims to deepen understanding of the perceived enablers and constraints influencing how teacher educators experience wellbeing within their everyday work as academics in higher education contexts. Using metalogue as method, nine teacher educators from two Australian universities collectively reflected on their wellbeing during an online focus group session guided by an arts-based activity. Framed by the key constructs of the PERMA wellbeing framework, the ensuing metalogue was analysed thematically. Findings highlighted the particular importance they place on feeling a sense of value, purpose, and meaning in their work as educators for their wellbeing. Findings further showed how the impact of current external reform-driven accountabilities on their work and that of educators in the profession more broadly constrain their wellbeing. These findings have implications for institutional leaders and teacher educators in Australia and internationally where academics are experiencing performative cultures.</p>","PeriodicalId":501129,"journal":{"name":"The Australian Educational Researcher","volume":"34 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-06-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141507417","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Narratives of high school teachers’ identity renewal through teaching a new intercultural curriculum subject","authors":"David Browning, J. Kriewaldt, Julie McLeod","doi":"10.1007/s13384-024-00734-z","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s13384-024-00734-z","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":501129,"journal":{"name":"The Australian Educational Researcher","volume":"53 12","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-06-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141349544","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Elizabeth Hitches, Stuart Woodcock, Kerry-Ann O’Sullivan, John Ehrich
{"title":"Leveraging students' voices: understanding ways university support services can strengthen student support","authors":"Elizabeth Hitches, Stuart Woodcock, Kerry-Ann O’Sullivan, John Ehrich","doi":"10.1007/s13384-024-00731-2","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s13384-024-00731-2","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":501129,"journal":{"name":"The Australian Educational Researcher","volume":"112 8","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-06-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141352473","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"‘Sky’s the limit’: a case study in fostering young children’s creativity during STEM online learning experiences","authors":"K. Maslin, Karen Murcia, S. Blackley, Geoff Lowe","doi":"10.1007/s13384-024-00739-8","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s13384-024-00739-8","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":501129,"journal":{"name":"The Australian Educational Researcher","volume":"104 21","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-06-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141352173","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
David Coombs, Shanna Langdon, Zana Jabir, Cathie Burgess, Rose Amazan
{"title":"The impact of Learning from Country on teachers’ understandings of place and community: insights from the Culturally Nourishing Schooling project","authors":"David Coombs, Shanna Langdon, Zana Jabir, Cathie Burgess, Rose Amazan","doi":"10.1007/s13384-024-00735-y","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s13384-024-00735-y","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":501129,"journal":{"name":"The Australian Educational Researcher","volume":"48 8","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-06-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141358994","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Schools as inclusive workplaces: understanding the needs of a diverse teaching workforce in Australian schools","authors":"Rachael Dwyer, Rachael Jacobs, Jiao Tuxworth, Jing Qi, Daniel X. Harris, Catherine Manathunga","doi":"10.1007/s13384-024-00740-1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s13384-024-00740-1","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":501129,"journal":{"name":"The Australian Educational Researcher","volume":"43 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-06-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141355352","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The things students don’t say: theorising Narrative Identity to understand non-traditional students’ experiences in higher education","authors":"Myfanwy Tilley","doi":"10.1007/s13384-024-00732-1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s13384-024-00732-1","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":501129,"journal":{"name":"The Australian Educational Researcher","volume":"72 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-06-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141382485","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The school-wide pedagogical framework at an Australian primary school: experiences and perspectives of teachers","authors":"Wendi Beamish, Kathy Gibbs, Anh Hai Le","doi":"10.1007/s13384-024-00727-y","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s13384-024-00727-y","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Teachers play a pivotal role in the implementation of school-based pedagogical reforms. The study reported here explored how participating teachers (<i>n</i> = 54) viewed the pedagogical framework developed at their Australian primary school to improve teaching and learning. Responses to an online survey revealed that teachers understood the pedagogical components of the framework, were confident implementers of the framework, and strongly endorsed its use throughout their school. Strength-based properties were associated with school-wide consistency, increased learning, and the monitoring of student progress while implementation challenges were related to (a) time constraints and teacher performance demands, and (b) catering for the needs of specific student groups. Additionally, a list of improvements was offered, including practical ideas to address the identified challenges and recommendations related to increasing professional flexibility, professional wellbeing, and professional development. While these findings are site specific, they provide directions for further research into pedagogical reforms for school improvement.</p>","PeriodicalId":501129,"journal":{"name":"The Australian Educational Researcher","volume":"2 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-05-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141193388","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}