Is 'Teach for All' knocking on your door?

Over the past few decades there has been a rapid expansion in alternative 18fast track 19 routes for teacher preparation. Among the most aggressive of these are Teach for All (TFA) schemes characterized not only by their ultra fast entry to teaching (6 - 7 week course) but also by their underlying philosophy that the so called 18crisis 19 in poor rural and urban schools can be solved by attracting the 18best and brightest 19 university graduates for a two year appointment in 18difficult to staff 19 schools. With its missionary zeal TFA is heralded by some as one way to solve socio- -educational problems that governments cannot. Others condemn such schemes as not only patronizing, but also as part of an ideologically driven and deliberate neoliberal attack on public education, teachers, teacher professionalism and working class or 18other 19 communities. Recently Teach for All came knocking on New Zealand 19s door. Concerned about the possible implications of this for the teaching profession and education more generally, the New Zealand Post Primary Teachers Association (PPTA) Te Wehengarua commissioned a review of the international literature on TFA schemes. This paper synthesizes some of the key findings of this review with particular focus on TFA 19s marketing strategies and the connections TFA schemes have with so called social entrepreneurs or venture philanthropists, many of whom are actively and aggressively engaged in shaping educational reforms in line with neoliberal agendas

Indigenous student success in science

Declining interest and engagement in science and science-related courses and careers has been well documented and widely noted across Australia and similar highly developed countries. For Australia to successfully navigate the transition from a mostly resource-dependant economy to one that is knowledge-based and competitive, every effort needs to be made to help all students engage in science at the secondary and tertiary level. For a variety of historical and social reasons, Indigenous Australians, while expert in traditional ecological knowledge, are arguably vulnerable with regard to school science, reflected by longstanding lower achievement in science compared to their nonIndigenous peers..

Investigating teacher presence in courses using synchronous videoconferencing

This research examines teacher presence in high school distance courses that are delivered by synchronous videoconference. In rural and remote areas, many school districts are using videoconferencing as way to reach dispersed students. This collective case study uses mixed methods to unpack the notion of presence from the perspective of teachers and their students. This study reports four key findings which have implications for building presence in a videoconference course: teachers’ confidence and experience aligned with higher presence; teaching videoconference and face-to-face classes simultaneously led to challenges with developing presence; immediacy behaviors correlated with higher presence; and, students’ learning preference related to perceived teacher presence. These findings confirm many of the issues raised in the literature about technology integration but also contribute new perspectives on teaching presence in a videoconference

Review of the use of technology in Mathematics education

This research is intended to inform the Mathematics Course Advisory Committee (CAC) of the Western Australian School Curriculum and Standards Authority (SCSA) about appropriate and effective use of digital technologies in Mathematics courses for upper secondary school students and in examinations that contribute to students’ Australian Tertiary Admissions Rank (ATAR)..

Outcomes of a chemistry content professional learning session: Teachers' perspectives

The national curriculum for chemistry includes topics that have not previously been taught at secondary level. In response to requests for teacher professional learning (PL) covering these topics, a course called 'Divide and Analyse' was developed. Investigations into the PL needs of chemistry teachers were carried out in conjunction with the pilot session. Pre- and post-PL survey responses and focus group discussions provided a wealth of information about the needs of chemistry teachers and how university chemists can support them. Three themes of support for chemistry teaching were identified: resources for chemistry teaching, content PL for chemistry teachers and enrichment excursions/incursions for school students. Teachers explained that this type of support may contribute to making the study of chemistry more interesting and relevant for their students. A partnership between chemistry teachers and university chemists can facilitate the provision of the identified support for chemistry teaching. It was concluded that a community of practice partnership had developed from the Divide and Analyse PL. A model that brings together the major findings of the study is proposed

Using evaluation to prove or to improve? An international, mixed method investigation into zoos' education evaluation practices

This study was a mixed-method investigation into zoos’ education evaluation practices. The first phase of the research involved an online questionnaire in which 176 zoos across 48 countries reported their evaluation practices. The second phase comprised nine case studies, enabling direct, in-depth observation of each site within its context, including face-to-face zoo education staff interviews. Taken together, the two phases of this research offer a revealing analysis of current evaluation practice within zoos. The research indicates that zoo education staff understand evaluation and its application within formal zoo education programmes. However, zoo staff noted several barriers to regular evaluation including time, cost and know-how. The majority of case study zoos indicated that their education programmes are guided primarily by school curriculum to be attractive to teachers and link with student learning. The research also suggests that educational programme evaluations in zoos focus mostly on participant satisfaction to ensure teacher expectations are met; educational outcomes for students are rarely addressed. Rather, informal measures including observations and anecdotes are heavily utilised within zoos across all regions, and zoos noted that information gained through formal satisfaction surveys and more informal evaluation processes was used to inform current and future programmes. School return visits and participation rates were also considered important indicators of programme success. However, whilst some case study sites had conducted formal satisfaction surveys, the results had not been analysed or utilised for programme revision or development. Thus, whilst there is a general understanding of evaluation, a strong focus on visitor satisfaction and participation seems to dominate evaluation practice within zoos. There seemed to be little evaluation focused on programme success in terms of the extent to which educational goals are achieved. The implications of these findings and suggestions for future research are discussed

Ideal Bandgap in a 2D Ruddlesden-Popper Perovskite Chalcogenide for Single-junction Solar Cells

Transition metal perovskite chalcogenides (TMPCs) are explored as stable, environmentally friendly semiconductors for solar energy conversion. They can be viewed as the inorganic alternatives to hybrid halide perovskites, and chalcogenide counterparts of perovskite oxides with desirable optoelectronic properties in the visible and infrared part of the electromagnetic spectrum. Past theoretical studies have predicted large absorption coefficient, desirable defect characteristics, and bulk photovoltaic effect in TMPCs. Despite recent progresses in polycrystalline synthesis and measurements of their optical properties, it is necessary to grow these materials in high crystalline quality to develop a fundamental understanding of their optical properties and evaluate their suitability for photovoltaic application. Here, we report the growth of single crystals of a two-dimensional (2D) perovskite chalcogenide, Ba3Zr2S7, with a natural superlattice-like structure of alternating double-layer perovskite blocks and single-layer rock salt structure. The material demonstrated a bright photoluminescence peak at 1.28 eV with a large external luminescence efficiency of up to 0.15%. We performed time-resolved photoluminescence spectroscopy on these crystals and obtained an effective recombination time of ~65 ns. These results clearly show that 2D Ruddlesden-Popper phases of perovskite chalcogenides are promising materials to achieve single-junction solar cells.Comment: 4 Figure