Rebecca Saunders

Australian schools are diverse, and support students from a wide range of racial, cultural, and linguistic backgrounds, as well as students with disability. Ironically, efforts to ensure equally diverse teacher workforces have been ineffective. Attempts to improve broader representation in teachers have been hampered by a homogenous approach to teacher recruitment and education. In 2016, Literacy and Numeracy Test for Initial Teacher Education (LANTITE) became a graduation requirement for teachers. The aim of this research is to explore the test-taking experiences of students (pre-service teachers) from diverse backgrounds, and the stakeholders who support them. A thematic analysis of data from a larger mixed methods study revealed additional tensions for students from diverse backgrounds including unintended consequences such as traumatic experiences and having to encounter additional hurdles to be successful. This study provides unique insights into additional pressures and hurdles students from diverse backgrounds experience when completing this high-stakes test.

This article investigates pre-service teachers’ experiences of undertaking LANTITE, a high-stakes literacy and numeracy test for initial teacher education students. In this mixed methods study, 189 initial teacher education students from 28 Australian universities participated in an online questionnaire, with 27 students going on to take part in semi-structured telephone interviews. Indicative findings give voice to those most impacted by the implementation of LANTITE in 2017, revealing student concerns about the processing and return of results, and test anxiety. This study provides a unique insight into the experiences of completing this high-stakes test.

The popularity of meditation has grown significantly in the West over the past two decades. Research studies in this area fall broadly into two main categories: (a) those which explore the clinical effectiveness of meditation in terms of neural and physiological changes; and, (b) those which explore the cognitive and emotional aspects of meditative practice. Few studies examine the design and implementation of meditation courses and the individual and collective journeys of those who undertake them. Given the increasing popularity in meditation training and the number of courses being offered, we argue that there is a need for a research-base to inform the design and implementation of such programs; to help better understand and support the needs of participants. This presentation shares initial findings from the first two phases (two of four) of a sequential mixed-methods study, designed to examine participant perceptions and experiences of an adult meditation training course (Mahat Meditation). Findings reveal participants have changed their perceptions of self, others, the world and sense of wellbeing as a result of the course and attribute these changes to aspects of the design and implementation of the training. Implications for meditation training course design and further research are discussed.

This purpose of this study is to examine teacher emotions in the context of instructional change. Specifically, this study focuses on the role emotions play when teachers transfer new instructional processes into their practice, and are then required to lead instructional change within their own institutions. A sequential, mixed methods research design consisting of the administration of a quantitative questionnaire followed by in-depth qualitative narrative interviews and classroom observations was used to better understand this complex area of educational change. Results from data collection and analysis were used to profile the journeys of professional change and leadership experienced by 27 tertiary teachers involved in a four-year systemic-change professional-development initiative. Findings revealed that the teachers involved in this study experienced a range of emotions when implementing new instructional processes and when leading instructional change. The teachers' emotional responses directly impacted their use of new instructional processes and their interactions with colleagues, as they assumed instructional leadership roles. A cyclical pattern of emotions emerged influenced by time, place and interpersonal relationships. Implications for the future design and implementation of instructional change initiatives and the preparation and support of teachers as leaders and agents of change are discussed.

The purpose of this study is to examine the effects of a systemic change professional development program designed to refine and extend the instructional practices of tertiary teachers working in the Australian vocational education and training (VET) sector. The Instructional Intelligence Professional Development Program provided the vehicle for this study, and was distinct in several ways: (a) it was designed and implemented using research based principles; (b) it was systemic in nature (involving all publicly funded colleges in Western Australia); and, (c) it occurred over an extended period of time (4 years). In examining the effects of the program this study explores the domains of both teacher behaviour and teacher affect and aims to better understand: (a) factors related to the uptake of the Instructional Intelligence Professional Development Program by tertiary teachers; (b) the emotional (affective) experiences of teachers involved in a systemic change professional development initiative; and, (c) the usefulness of the Concerns Based Adoption Model (CBAM) as a conceptual lens and methodology for the assessment of teacher professional development programs. In order to examine group and individual experiences of the instructional change process, the research design incorporated a mixed-methods approach. This comprised four complimentary, sequential phases of data collection and analysis, with each individual phase informing the subsequent phase. Findings revealed that the teachers involved in this study had changed their instructional practices as a result of the Instructional Intelligence Professional Development Program and were implementing new instructional methods and processes in their classrooms. Factors which facilitated the uptake of teacher change in practice include: (a) having an extended timeframe to participate in professional development; (b) the cyclical nature of the program design, which included theory, demonstration, practice and reflection; (c) the sharing of contextualised strategies and resources; and, (d) peer coaching relationships. Factors which hindered teachers’ progress include: (a) lack of support from middle management; (b) lack of time to complete program requirements in their colleges; (c) peer coaching communication breakdowns; (d) competing system demands; and, (e) teachers’ own emotional responses. Emotions emerged as a key factor in mediating teachers’ experiences and responses to change, with teacher participants experiencing a cyclical pattern of emotions, which were influenced by time, place and interpersonal relationships. It became evident that teachers’ experiences of educational change (reform) are multifaceted and influenced by their emotional responses to what is happening around them. Change therefore has both behavioural and affective dimensions, and equal consideration needs to be given to each when designing, implementing, assessing and researching teacher professional development initiatives. CBAM was found to be a useful conceptual framework and methodology for assessing the behavioural and affective aspects of teacher professional development programs. Data obtained through the use of the Stages of concern Questionnaire (SoCQ) and the Levels of Use (LoU) Focused Interview were valuable when used as part of a broader mixed methods research design. These findings have important implications for teacher professional development. Educational change initiatives are complex and uniquely contextualised. As such, rather than applying a “one size fits all” to the design, implementation and assessment of teacher professional development programs the findings of this research underline the importance of understanding the intricacies of the context in which they occur. This means that research based design principles of professional development and research design frameworks used to assess programs, should be tailored to meet the specific needs of the environment and the teachers who work within it. Further, individual teacher experiences of systemic educational change processes are multifarious. More research is needed to help better understand the composite relationship between teacher emotions and change. Equal attention, therefore, needs to be afforded to teacher behaviour and affect in the design, implementation and assessment of professional development programs.

A significant body of literature assists researchers and program designers to identify the desirable characteristics of professional development for teachers. Few studies, however, specifically examine the operation and outcomes of programs built upon research-led principles. This study uses a sequential mixed methods design to examine a four-year systemic-change professional development initiative designed to extend and refine the instructional processes of teachers working in the vocational education and training (VET) system in Western Australia. The program’s design incorporated theory and research on systemic change and teacher professional development. Findings reveal that the program was successful in helping teachers extend and refine their instructional practice, but also uncovered several barriers that hindered teachers’ implementation of change. Findings from this study contribute to a better understanding of the complexities and issues involved in the implementation of teacher professional development programs based on research and have the potential to inform future program design.

Research literature in the field of teacher emotions and change broadly accepts that behaviour and cognition are inseparable from perception and emotion. Despite this, educational reform efforts tend to focus predominantly on changing individual behaviours and beliefs and largely neglect or at best pay token attention to the emotional dimensions of the change process. This study examines teacher emotions in the context of educational reform and focuses on the role emotions play when teachers transfer new instructional processes into their practice. The teachers involved in this study took part in a four year systemic change professional development program designed to refine and extend their instructional practice. A sequential mixed methods research design consisting of the administration of a quantitative questionnaire followed by in-depth qualitative narrative interview analysis was used to gain insight into this complex area of educational change. Findings revealed that the teachers involved in this study experienced a range of emotions when participating in professional development and their emotional responses directly impacted their use of new instructional processes. A cyclical pattern of emotions emerged influenced by time, place and interpersonal relationships. Implications for the future design and implementation of professional development change initiatives are discussed.

In the Australian vocational education and training (VET) sector teachers are drawn primarily from industry and work in a system which appears to privilege vocational expertise over that of teaching expertise. Debate surrounds the adequacy of the benchmark VET teaching qualification (Certificate IV in Training and Assessment - TAA40110) and many argue that qualification and professional development in the sector are preoccupied with promoting VET system compliance instead of teaching capability. This study examines the effects of a systemic change professional development program for VET teachers in the technical and further education (TAFE) system in Western Australia. Designed to refine and extend the instructional practices of VET teachers, the Instructional Intelligence Professional Development Program took place over four years. In examining its effects, a sequential mixed methods approach was used. Findings revealed that teachers' beliefs and instructional practice changed as a result of the program. Further, teachers reported that their use of new instructional processes had a positive impact on student learning. These findings have the potential to inform the future design and implementation of professional development programs, contribute to the debate on the pedagogical requirements for VET teachers and contribute to a growing body of research on instructional intelligence.

The purpose of this article is to describe the use of the Concerns Based Adoption Model (Hall & Hord, 2006) as a conceptual lens and practical methodology for professional development program assessment in the vocational education and training (VET) sector. In this sequential mixed-methods study, findings from the first two phases (two of five) of data collection and analysis are used as examples to profile the journeys of professional change experienced by 27 VET teachers involved in a four-year systemic-change professional- development initiative designed to extend and refine their pedagogical practice. The examples support the view that a Concerns Based Adoption Model provides an effective framework for better understanding teachers' professional change in aVET context. The conceptual and practical usefulness of this approach is discussed in terms of its implications for the future design, implementation and assessment of professional development initiatives.