Faculty of Creative Industries, Education and Social Justice 2

Doctor of Education

BENNETT, Paul

Thesis Title

An Investigation of the Impact of a Makerspace Learning Environment on Student Participation and Learning in Information Technology Classes

Supervisors

• Associate Professor Vinesh Chandra  (Principal Supervisor)
• Dr Timothy Harford Lehmann  (Associate Supervisor)
• Dr Andy Ju‑Chih Yeh  (Associate Supervisor)

Citation

IT has grown more important in our lives. In 2021, just 3.3% of Queensland high school graduates studied IT (QCAA, 2022). Design-Based Research was utilised to explore how students learn IT in a Makerspace Learning Environment (MLE). Constructionism was used to assess semi-structured interviews, observations, diaries, and field notes. This research revealed that adding an MLE to a secondary technology classroom might increase students' Australian Curriculum technology results. This research shows that MLEs may provide an interesting and collaborative learning environment for students. This study could help secondary schools considering an MLE and those looking to improve students' IT abilities.

Doctor of Philosophy

AGUILAR ALONSO, Roxana

Thesis Title

Evaluation of a Relationships and Sexuality Education Program for Primary Schools in Queensland, Australia

Supervisors

• Dr Claire Patricia Moran  (External Supervisor)
• Professor Kerryann Maree Walsh  (Principal Supervisor)
• Adjunct Associate Professor Kate Elizabeth Williams  (Associate Supervisor)
• Associate Professor Lisa Joy van Leent  (Associate Supervisor)

Citation

This study examined the extent to which the ‘All School’ program, a relationships and sexuality education program, addressed children’s (aged 9-12) sexual health and wellbeing outcomes. A two-stage convergent mixed methods design was adopted using a theory-driven approach informed by realist evaluation. Participants were children in Years 4, 5, and 6, their parents/caregivers, and teachers. After attending the ‘All School’ program, children’s knowledge and self-efficacy improved. Children found the program relevant and appropriate. This study also found that children who participated in the evaluation were likely to have received limited relationships and sexuality education at home and in school.

ARNOLD, Julie Lee

Thesis Title

Accessible Experiences of Assessment for Learning Pedagogies

Supervisors

• Christopher Deluca  (External Supervisor)
• Dr Andrew Peter Gibson  (Associate Supervisor)
• Associate Professor Jillian Ellen Willis  (Principal Supervisor)

Citation

Assessment for Learning (AfL) is powerful classroom practice that is challenging for teachers and presents significant barriers to learners, including students with language and/or attentional difficulties. Analysis of data from 22 Year 10 English classes highlights interconnections between student experience and teacher response in professional learning. Informed by a pragmatic conceptualisation of six dimensions of student experience, findings demonstrate value for AfL and inclusion research. The project also demonstrated the practical value of positioning teachers as professional responders in an AfL inquiry cycle, where student voice is a layer of evidence to inform practice.

BAIRD‑BATE, Kirsten Patricia

Thesis Title

Conceptualisations of wellbeing: Through the Eyes of Primary Carers of Autistic Children

Supervisors

• Dr Lyndal May O'Gorman  (Principal Supervisor)
• Professor Elizabeth Ruth Saggers  (Associate Supervisor)

Citation

Primary carers provide critical supports to autistic children with the effectiveness of such supports relying on the wellbeing of the primary carer. Yet current understandings of wellbeing within autism literature are limited. This mixed methods study examined how primary carers of autistic children conceptualised wellbeing and the factors that influenced wellbeing. The data revealed primary carers conceptualised wellbeing as multidimensional, subjective, and malleable and highlighted their role as active agents. Findings contribute a strength-perspective to the literature and valuably emphasise the need to centralise primary carer wellbeing within policies and systems aimed at optimizing outcomes for autistic children is asserted.

HICBAN, Cynthia

Thesis Title

Hand-In-Hand: The Co-Construction of Children's Participation Rights in an Early Childhood Education Setting

Supervisors

• Dr Julia Allyse Mascadri  (Associate Supervisor)
• Associate Professor Maryanne Agnes Theobald  (Principal Supervisor)

Citation

This study identified how children’s participation rights are upheld in an early childhood education setting, drawing on extracts taken from 75 hours of video recordings of educator-child and child-child interactions. The study developed a new instrument, Listening to Voices in Interaction for Participation (LViIP) that employed conversation analysis and Lundy’s model of participation (2007). The tool identified the precisely timed verbal and non-verbal actions facilitating rights enactment, demonstrated how children create spaces for their voices to exert influence, and how even young children can be peer coaches. The study’s implications include fresh perspectives on how participation rights can be achieved.

MIL‑HOMENS FIGUEIRA DOS SANTOS SILVA, Irina Soraia

Thesis Title

Young Autistic Children Using Digital Technology in the Home

Supervisors

• Distinguished Professor Susan Jill Danby  (Principal Supervisor)
• Professor Elizabeth Ruth Saggers  (Associate Supervisor)

Citation

This study of family digital interactions investigated young autistic children’s digital experiences in the home, including during the COVID-19 pandemic. The practices and perspectives of autistic children and families showed how digital interactions were integrated within their daily lives. Digital technologies, alongside parental encouragement and involvement, supported autistic children’s communication, social interactions, entertainment, relaxation and education. This study’s findings demonstrate how to support autistic children using digital technologies. These insights highlight the importance of development of policies and guidelines to support autistic children and their families in safely exploring their digital worlds and making the most of their digital experiences.

MONROY CELIS, Felipe

Thesis Title

Integration of ICT to Support Critical Reading in Bogotá

Supervisors

• Dr Shaun Sydney Nykvist  (Associate Supervisor)
• Professor Hitendra Kumaran Pillay  (Principal Supervisor)

Citation

This qualitative case study examines the integration of ICT tools by secondary school teachers in Bogotá, Colombia, to enhance critical reading skills in Spanish language. Employing the TPACK framework, the research gathered and analysed meaningful data on the successful integration of technology, pedagogy, and content knowledge, finding how teachers have strong bases in pedagogy and content but how diverse is their technology knowledge and use for teaching.

WANGDI, Dumcho

Thesis Title

Understanding the Interplay Between Students' Social Bonds and Metacognition in Middle School Science

Supervisors

• Associate Professor Alberto Bellocchi  (Principal Supervisor)
• Associate Professor James Patrick Davis  (Associate Supervisor)

Citation

The study explores how social bonds (social and emotional connections) and metacognition (thoughts about thinking) interact when Bhutanese Year 9 students learn physics. Findings reveal that social bonds and metacognition mutually reinforce each other during physics learning. Students’ metacognitive engagement is shaped by their bonds, with intact bonds leading to deeper engagement and enhanced understanding of physics concepts, while broken bonds are associated with reduction in metacognitive engagement. The study contributes to a holistic understanding of metacognition in science education scholarship, offering practical implications that can inform the practices of science teaching.