Christina Chalmers

Retooling Asian-Pacific Teachers to Promote Creativity, Innovation and Problem Solving in Science Classrooms

This paper reports on a Professional Learning Programme undertaken by primary school teachers in China that aimed to facilitate the development of ‘adaptive expertise’ in using technology to facilitate innovative science teaching and learning such as that envisaged by the Chinese Ministry of Education’s (2010–2020) education reforms. The study found that the participants made substantial progress towards the development of adaptive expertise manifested not only by advances in the participants’ repertoires of pedagogical content knowledge but also in changes to their levels of confidence and identities as teachers. By the end of the programme, the participants had coalesced into a professional learning community that readily engaged in the sharing, peer review, reuse and adaption, and collaborative design of innovative science learning and assessment activities. The findings from the study indicate that those engaged in the development of Professional Learning Programmes in Asia-Pacific nations need to take cognizance of certain cultural factors and traditions idiosyncratic to the educational systems. This is reflected in the amended set of principles to inform the design and implementation of professional learning programmes presented in the concluding sections of the paper.

Systems Thinking Approach to Robotics Curriculum in Schools

This chapter presents a systems thinking approach for the conceptualization, design, and implementation of robotics curriculum to scaffold students’ learning of important Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) concepts and processes. This approach perceives the curriculum as a system of integrated elements and allows for the investigation of the interdependencies amongst the elements and the dynamics of the curriculum as a whole. Through this approach, we believe that students can be provided with robotics curriculum units that facilitate the learning of STEM “Big Ideas” of and about STEM. A STEM “Big Idea” is central to the understanding and application of STEM across a wide range of fields, one that links numerous STEM discipline understandings. Robotics is a rich context in which students can establish deep knowledge and robust understanding of STEM “Big Ideas”. Curriculum units based on this systems thinking approach can do much to ensure that students engaged in robotics activities focus not only on the completion of robotics tasks but also on the social construction of integrated networks of authentic STEM knowledge centred around “Big Ideas” of and about STEM.

Who Pays for Standardised Testing? A Cost-Benefit Study of Mandated Testing in Three Queensland Secondary Schools.

This paper reports on an Australian study that explored the costs and benefits of the National Assessment Programme, Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) testing, both tangible and intangible, of Year 9 students in three Queensland schools. The study commenced with a review of pertinent studies and other related material about standardised testing in Australia, the USA and UK. Information about NAPLAN testing and reporting, and the pedagogical impacts of standardised testing were identified, however little about administrative costs to schools was found. A social constructivist perspective and a multiple case study approach were used to explore the actions of school managers and teachers in three Brisbane secondary schools. The study found that the costs of NAPLAN testing to schools fell into two categories: preparation of students for the testing; and administration of the tests. Whilst many of the costs could not be quantified, they were substantial and varied according to the education sector in which the school operated. The benefits to schools of NAPLAN testing were found to be limited. The findings have implications for governments, curriculum authorities and schools, leading to the conclusion that, from a school perspective, the benefits of NAPLAN testing do not justify the costs.

Involving Everyone: Coding and Decoding Languages.

Through the use of humanoid robots, a rural school in South Australia has included both Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people in embedding the “sleeping” language of the traditional owners of the land (the Narungga people) into the classroom. Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal students worked with virtual and real humanoid robots to develop in parallel both their programming skills and their understanding of the Narungga language and culture. This research is part of a larger three-year study investigating the impact of humanoid robots on students’ learning and engagement and draws on questionnaires, interviews and journals from the educators. The study demonstrated how pride and interest in Aboriginal culture can be partially reclaimed using these inclusive and adaptive technologies. Simultaneously, students and educators were learning two languages; the coding language required to program the robot and the Narungga language.