Numeracy Action Research Project

This subject is not offered in 2015.

340 hours

None

None

N/A

N/A

For the purposes of considering request for Reasonable Adjustments under the Disability Standards for Education (Cwth 2005), and Students Experiencing Academic Disadvantage Policy, academic requirements for this subject are articulated in the Subject Overview, Learning Outcomes and Assessment Requirements of this entry.

The University is dedicated to provide support to those with special requirements. Further details on the disability support scheme can be found at the Disability Liaison website: http://www.services.unimelb.edu.au/disability

Participants in the subject will work with their school to identify, diagnose, solve and evaluate the solution to a critical challenge related to numeracy faced by a school, or group of schools. Participants will be grouped into teams who are facing similar challenges, with academic and workplace mentoring. Participants will build on the knowledge acquired in all other subjects, and apply this in a real world setting drawing on both specialist numeracy expertise and their skills in building teacher capacity. Participants will gain first hand experience of making data-driven decisions, using quality assessment, designing effective instruction, mentoring teachers and evaluating outcomes.

On completion of this subject students will be able to:

• Define a researchable problem of practice in their school context;
• Undertake a review to investigate an educational issue;
• Develop a research design through which an educational issue can be investigated;
• Use research processes with due regard to ethical procedures
• Demonstrate a capacity to engage in reflective, critical discussion of the area of particular interest.

A Project Proposal (1000 words), due four weeks into semester (10%); a research report (9000 words), due in the end of semester. (90%).

Goos, M., Stillman, G., & Vale, C. (2007). Teaching secondary school mathematics: Research and practice for the 21st century. Sydney: Allen & Unwin.

This subject is not available as a breadth subject.

This subject will develop the skills to enable students to:

• Be skilled communicators who can effectively articulate and justify relationships between theory, research and teaching
• Be flexible and able to adapt to change through knowing how to research a problem of practice;
• Understand the significance of developing their practice on the basis of research evidence;
• Work in teams with skills in cooperation, communication and negotiation to engage in reflective and critical discussion of research in education;
• Be independent of mind, responsible, resilient, self-regulating.
• Demonstrate leadership in the workplace.