Welcome to School of Education

What’s On

1. Public Lecture:Using Primary Knowledge to Enhance the Learning of Secondary KnowledgeWhen: 23rd MayWhen: 23rd MayAbstract In the last decade cognitive load theory has been closely aligned with evolutionary biology. Two types of knowledge have been identified: Primary, which humans have evolved to learn effortlessly and without instruction (e.g. face recognition), and secondary, much newer knowledge which requires significant effort and instruction (e.g. mathematics). The purpose of this presentation is to report on two current research projects (collaborations with colleagues and graduate students) that aim to show that instinctive primary knowledge can enhance the learning of secondary knowledge. The first project focuses on problem solving. Research into expertise has identified that humans possess a number of untaught general problem solvers that they use when they have little knowledge on how to proceed. However, research has failed to show any benefit in teaching general problem solvers. Our research suggests that such general problem solvers can be effective if used at the correct stage of knowledge acquisition. The second project focuses on instructional animation and the evidence that humans have evolved to observe and copy various forms of human movement quite effortlessly. Our research suggests that animations are an effective form of instruction when learning about human motor skills because of this natural observational skills advantage. The presentation will outline some key theoretical arguments and report the main findings from a number of studies linked to these two projects. Biography Paul Ayres is a researcher whose main focus is on learning and instruction, and applied cognitive psychology. In particular he is a member of the group at UNSW that pioneered Cognitive Load Theory. His highly cited research has been conducted on many of the key areas of CLT such as split-attention, isolating elements, measuring cognitive load, the goal-free effect, the expertise reversal effect, and worked examples. A recent focus is on using technology and multimedia in learning, with a special interest on the role of mirror neurons in animated human movement instruction. He is currently supervising 8 PhD students researching topics such as general problem solving strategies & brainstorming, worked examples & feedback, instructional design for chronic pain learners, human movement & instructional animations, multimedia & transitory effects, motivation & cognitive load, collaborative learning, second language acquisition. He is also interested in mathematics education and effective teaching. He serves as an Associate Editor for the international journal Applied Cognitive Psychology. To register please click here.Room 119, John Goodsell Building UNSW
2. Open Forum: Is What is Good for Business Good for Schools?When: 13th JuneWhen: 13th JuneAutonomy, Liberation, Freedom and Local Decisions: Good for Business but is it Good for Public Schooling? FormatThis year the School of Education is holding a series of forums in which contentious issues relating to the field of education will be discussed by academics, practicing teachers and interested parties. Four times a year an expert will be invited to speak on a current issue, presenting controversial arguments that will be relevant to education professionals. Headlining the series will be Dr Scott Eacott of the University of Newscastle and Prof Colin Evers (UNSW) on the 13th  of June when the topic, "Autonomy, Liberation, Freedom and Local Decisions: Good for Business but is it Good for Public Schooling?" will be up for debate. It is with great pleasure that we announce this event and encourage all practicing teachers and educational professionals to join us in discussion. AbstractAs our nation is being swept once again with moves toward greater level of autonomy for schools it is timely to ask questions of such a move. At its most basic, what is it we seek autonomy from? That is, while bureaucratic structures are frequently demonised, is autonomy what is really required to achieve the changes in public education that we seek, or is it yet another seductive term taken from the corporate world? Research, and experience, tells us that the closer decisions are made to coalface the greater buy-in from staff, and ultimately better outcomes for students. However history shows that it is common sense arguments that detract from some of the larger social matters overlooked in the adoption of business models of educational management. Drawing on a range of experiences in schools, research on school leadership and public discourse, in this presentation I seek to problematise the arguments for school autonomy and suggest alternate paths which would be more productive and fruitful in advancing the goals of public education in Australia. BiographiesDr Scott Eacott, PhD, is a senior lecturer, convenor of educational leadership programs and leader of the Educational Leadership, Management and Administration (ELMA) research group at the University of Newcastle, Australia. Prior to entering higher education, he worked in the NSW public school system, most recently as an assistant principal. His school based experience includes schools ranging from small isolated communities to large regional centres and different geographic locations. Scott's research interests are theorising leadership; school leadership preparation and development; and re-conceptualising strategy in the school leadership context. His latest book 'School leadership and strategy in managerialist times' is published by Sense Publishers. Professor Colin Evers is a Professor of Educational Leadership at the University of New South Wales. Prior to that appointment he was Professor of Education at The University of Hong Kong. His research interests include educational leadership, administration and policy, philosophy of education, and research methodology. His interest in research methodology flows from a perspective on epistemology that is naturalistic and coherentist, and he is currently co-editing a Special Issue of the journal Comparative Education devoted to an examination of the relationship between Confucian heritage cultures and methodology. To register for this event please click here. John Goodsell Room 119, UNSW
3. Public Lecture: Multilingualism and Multimodality in a Digital EraWhen: 27th JuneWhen: 27th JuneAbstract If we want to have good connections between research and teaching, we need to be ‘talking the same language’. Multilingualism and multimodality are two vitally important dimensions of language learning and use, but our ways of thinking about them are unclear and characterised by tension. We need to develop new frameworks that incorporate more aspects more systematically. Australia research and teaching that focus on ‘literacy’ on the one hand and ‘language’ and specific language development (ESL, second language acquisition, languages other than English) on the other hand are characterised by inconsistency and tension. In part the tension derives from the theoretical frameworks used in the two areas and the perceived lack of differentiation between languages in global definitions of literacy. For example, if a too-global view of literacy is used, a lack of distinction between ‘literacy’ and ‘literacy in “language X”’, makes it very difficult to explore differences between first and second language literacies or between monolingual and multilingual literacies. The field of second language development research has begun to engage more with writing development as frameworks have emerged that permit the role of the teacher as well as other scaffolding resources to be theorised and as groups of learners such as refugees not literate in any language have become more important in both research and teaching. However, ways of talking about what is being looked at from a ‘language’ or a ‘literacy’ perspective are still not unified. Adding to the dilemma has been the rapid development of digital technologies that have both blurred the distinction between ‘spoken’ and ‘written’ language on the one hand and added to the range of expressive tools that can be used, e.g. pictures, video clips, animations, hyperlinks. This simultaneous merging and diversifying of the object of study has created problems in being clear about what is being referred to. For example, what is the relationship between ‘reading’ and ‘viewing’ or between ‘writing’ by hand and ‘writing’ using a keyboard or ‘dictating’ into a speech recognition tool? What is the distinction between a footnote and an inserted comment or a hyperlink? The emergence of multimodality in communication has further increased the definitional problem for work with multilingualism. For example, if a picture or graphic is used in the middle of a piece of writing, does this mean that the writer has switched ‘out of’ the original language and, if so, into which language? As a result of these dilemmas, we need to find new ways of describing what we are doing so that we can both recognise and appropriately support the development of multilingualism in learners. In this presentation, I will present an emerging framework to systematically capture the range of relationships between multilingualism and multimodality. Biography Howard Nicholas is Senior Lecturer in Language Education. He is based on the Bundoora campus. He has wide research and teaching experience in child and adult second language acquisition (German and English) and in the acquisition of German as a first language. He has researched extensively in the area of mobile technologies and education. He has worked in Germany on various research projects and has undertaken Visiting Professorships at the University of Hawaii, at Manoa, Concordia University in Montreal and the University of Western Australia. From 1991 to 2007 he was Senior Researcher in the joint Macquarie University-La Trobe University Australian AMEP (Adult Migrant English Program) Research Centre. Howard was Vice-President, President and Immediate Past President of the Applied Linguistics Association of Australia between 2000 and 2008. He was Director of the Centre for Regional Education within the Faculty of Education in 2008 and 2009 and Associate Dean (International) in 2011. To register please click here. Room 119, John Goodsell Building, UNSW

• View all Events