Purpose: Demonstration farming has been an important part of agricultural extension since the first decades of the twentieth century. While Seaman Knapp is often credited with developing demonstration farming, his son acknowledged that the concept has much earlier origins in the nineteenth century development of model/pattern farms. However,…

Play is traditionally considered the foundation of learning in the early years. Because play is characterized by free choice, it can be difficult for adults to ensure all learning is useful for children. The intervention described here took a novel approach to this problematic. It exposed 17 four-year-olds to different adult demonstrations to see…

Observation of fellow educators conducting demonstration lessons is one avenue for teachers to develop sensitivity to noticing students' reasoning. We examined teachers' noticing of children's learning behaviours in one demonstration lesson of the "Mathematical Reasoning Professional Learning Research Program" (MRPLRP). The observations…

The Australian federal government is preparing a new higher education quality assurance framework under the leadership of the recently established Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (TEQSA). Groundwork for this framework included a major national demonstration project to develop outcome-based graduate standards in a selected range of…

As part of a large research and professional development project funded by the Catholic Education Office Melbourne (CEOM), called "Contemporary Teaching and Learning of Mathematics," the ACU team has been leading demonstration lessons. There is certainly not universal agreement on the worth of demonstration lessons in the mathematics…

Pastoral care in schools has traditionally been associated with notions of help, advice, values development, and children's moral welfare. In the past it has been viewed predominantly as a separate set of extra-curricula activities offered to students by school staff with particular support roles, or "pastors" from affiliated church or…

Describes initiatives taken by Australian universities to provide support and encouragement for female students in the computing discipline. (Author/MKR)

Discusses two Australian projects designed to encourage hands-on science: Family Science Project and the Education and Outreach Programmes from the National Science and Technology Center. (MKR)

Findings from a national study of early intervention programs and toy libraries for handicapped children in Australia are summarized. After an introduction to theoretical concerns, chapter 2 reviews the rationale for early intervention and describes research on components of exemplary programs and on evaluation of the effectiveness of early…

A 10-week course designed to assist adults of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander descent with profound developmental disabilities to function more effectively was evaluated. Issues emerged concerning the lack of lead-time for course set-up, the inappropriateness of the curriculum, and communication and logistical difficulties. (Author/DB)

This article examines the literature and the experience of the MindMatters Plus demonstration schools in regard to improving student and staff mental health literacy. The aim of the MindMatters Plus initiative is to build the capacity of secondary schools to increase their support of students with high mental health needs. This is achieved in…

A survey was conducted in Victoria, Australia, to collect data concerning the prevalence of individuals with severe communication impairments. Based on the data gathered from 1100 service facilities, the Severe Communication Impairment Outreach Project was established. Funding was acquired to employ two statewide consultant speech pathologists…

The aim of the MM+ initiative is to build the capacity of secondary schools to ensure optimal outcomes of students with high needs in the area of mental health. This is important for many reasons including the fact that poor psychological wellbeing in students has been found to lead to behavioural difficulties at school that can then serve as…

Interviews, questionnaires, school visits, and examination of project films and documents supplied information for an interim evaluation of the effectiveness of the Roctapus (Really Outstanding Color Television About Practically Unlimited Subjects) program. A closed-circuit television series following a magazine format, Roctapus is distributed to…

There is little doubt that the findings of research in science education can be depressing at times. The literature is replete with reports and research findings which highlight problems and shortcomings associated with the teaching and learning of science. In order to provide a refreshing alternative to the majority of research reports which…