Ken Purnell

Judging quality through substantive conversations between markers

Decisions by markers about quality in student work remain confusing to most students and markers. This may in part be due to the relatively subjective nature of what constitutes a quality response to an assessment task. This paper reports on an experiment that documented the process of decision‐making by multiple markers at a university who assessed the same written student assessment responses. The paper analyses the professional conversations between those markers around their conceptions of quality in the student assessment responses. It was found that the markers appeared to share common understandings of quality in the context of the marking criteria and standards across the achievement levels awarded. However, despite these apparently shared notions of quality, in some cases different levels of achievement were awarded to the same student assessment responses. This suggests that that there is a clear need for explicitly stated standard descriptors for each level of achievement and that this must be interpreted through substantive professional conversations in the context of real student work. The key driver is the student work, and conversations amongst markers about what constitutes ‘quality’ in the context of the written and explicit criteria and standards of achievement that are available to students and markers alike are a necessity.

Sustainable Schools: Making Energy Efficiency a Lifestyle Priority.

Promoting efficient energy use in schools that consequently reduces greenhouse gas emissions is the purpose of a residential Energy Efficiency in Schools (EEIS) program reported on in this paper. Research on this program aligns with one of the “key overarching sustainability issues”, set out in the Learning for Sustainability: NSW Environmental Education Plan 2002-2005 : “Sustaining energy use, cutting greenhouse gases”. The EEIS program was sponsored by Queensland EPA, Ergon Energy and Education Queensland. Participants learnt about innovation, leadership, coal mining, greenhouse issues, the “greenhouse challenge”, conducting energy audits, alternative energy and promoting energy efficient practices in school and the community. Three EEIS models in Queensland that supported change in energy usage behaviours of participants (school students, parents and staff) is examined. In each of the models, interviews were conducted and questionnaires were completed with participants. In Model 1 it was found that, overall; the EEIS program did develop positive energy efficient behaviours in those who participated. In relation to whole school effects, mixed results were obtained. In Model 1 a rural school initially reduced energy consumption by fifty percent and in Model 2 significant changes in energy efficient behaviours in the school communities occurred. In Model 3 one school followed through an action plan and similar positive effects were observed. The development of an action plan that is implemented in the school, the selection of suitable participants, and post-program visits to schools by relevant staff were among the factors that contributed to the overall success. Each model was found to have achieved their aims to varying degrees but had outcomes that are likely to have both lifetime and possibly intergenerational effects.

Distributed leadership of school curriculum change: an integrative approach

ABSTRACT Since its inception in 1999, the distributed leadership framework of Spillane, Halverson, and Diamond [2004. “Towards a Theory of Leadership Practice: A Distributed Perspective.” Journal of Curriculum Studies 36 (1): 3–34. doi:10.1080/0022027032000106726] has supported research into leadership and change in schools. Whilst the conceptual integrity of the framework is sound, research based upon its premises has attracted some criticism. The research has had a narrowed focus which has not generally reflected the inseparability of the elements of the framework and the situation within which leadership is enacted. In addition, it often fails to account for the complexity of critical elements of the environment such as micropolitics. This position paper proposes a reconfiguration of the distributed leadership framework as a research framework in response to this critique. The paper asserts that this new perspective that is presented is able to respond to the critique through an integrated approach that encompasses situation, social distribution and task enactment and which supports an integrated approach to research methodology. This adapted framework has the potential to more fully support research design that is actuality holistic and embedded in the context.

Navigating, Negotiating and Nullifying Contradictions in the Research Around School Curriculum Change

Effective change management in the twenty-first century within the schooling sector relies on many factors including professional learning and the development of relationships in complex cultures. From a research viewpoint, understanding such complex cultures requires considered methodological choices to explore the richness of multiple realities in qualitative study. Social network analysis provides a tool to navigate complex data sets and link them to develop a greater understanding of the interactions and flow of knowledge within an organisation. This chapter applies social network analysis in a qualitative case study to explore the roles and influences of individuals and their behaviour in a multifarious environment responding to change.

Sustainability Education in Classrooms: Developing Teacher Expertise

Sustainability education will be in the fore of learning experiences for all Australian children and young people as the new national school curriculum is implemented. Commitment to sustainable patterns of living is one of the three cross curriculum perspectives (Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority [ACARA] 2010. Cross curriculum perspectives. http://www.acara.edu.au/curriculum/cross_curriculum_perspectives.html. Accessed 18 October 2010). The compulsory disciplines of science and geography provide the key curriculum, assessment and reporting areas for this. This chapter takes a fresh approach to sustainability education and uses epistemological questions to guide the reader’s thinking. We argue that decision-making on environmental issues must be based on quality evidence and robust analysis of that evidence. We conclude that while sustainability education has become a highly emotive and politicised area of debate and human activity, there is much that we can do as educators to contribute towards creating a preferred, sustainable future.-->

School‐based Senior‐school Curriculum Studies for Preservice Teachers

Abstract Preservice teachers usually place very high value on those parts of their courses which are based in schools. We extended the school‐based component of the Graduate Diploma of Teaching (Secondary) course at Central Queensland University to include curriculum studies in Year 11 and 12 subjects. Questionnaires were administered to participants to explore their perceptions and reactions to this extension of school‐based studies. The findings suggest that school‐based development of the senior curriculum has significant advantages for school students, teachers and student teachers. However, the data also suggest that there is need for a professional‐development programme for teachers acting as mentors to preservice teachers.