|
 |
|||
Melbourne Graduate School of Education
|
||||
|
||||
|
 |
Youth Research News Vol 9 No 3; September 1999In this Issue:Working Paper 19 Seeking The Balance: Risk, Choices And Life Priorities In The Life-Patterns Project 1998/9 Peter Dwyer, Aramiha Harwood and Debra Tyler This Working Paper provides an up-date on the findings from our major longitudinal study titled the Life-Patterns Project. The Paper is based on returns to our 1998 survey and some of the material from our interview sub-sample. At this stage in their lives, having just completed their studies and entered their mid-twenties, for the majority of our respondents `having a steady job' is the number one priority, but many are now revising their previous expectations about the balance between a `career' and other priorities in life. They seem very much aware of the need for flexibility but this raises the question of whether some respondents are just biding their time or reluctantly `settling for less' because of changes in the labour market. A free copy is enclosed to all the financial members of the YRC. Further copies are available from the Centre (an updated order form is enclosed), at $10 per copy plus $3 for postage and handling, Combined Study and Work Pathways in Vocational Education and Training: Policy Implications and Analysis This Report on one of our major projects in 1998 is due to be published by the National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER). Copies can be obtained from NCVER, PO Box 115, Kensington Park SA 5068. The research was conducted throughout 1998 in three States. Up to two-thirds of the students surveyed were in some form of either paid or unpaid employment. While income is still a major consideration in this, there is now an added rationale - the need to demonstrate, within the restructured labour market, work-preparedness, competencies, and work-experience as employment credentials. At the same time, they saw little indication that their employers were interested in their studies or that their training institutions were interested in their work. Some disappointment and disillusionment was expressed about having to do it all for themselves with no real recognition from either their colleges or their employers. If this is the case, it suggests that the actual implementation of national training policy is lagging behind student assessments of market demands, and gives little recognition to the opportunities students are creating for themselves. Connect 118 Connect 118 (August 1999) is now available, with major articles on education and democracy in Britain and Canada. There are also accounts of student participation in the production of radio programs, in Junior School Councils, in student networks, in Junior Shire Councils and in reconciliation. A wide variety of resources is also profiled. Copies of Connect are $4 from the Youth Research Centre, or subscriptions for 6 issues are available from Connect, 12 Brooke Street, Northcote 3070 - $30 for organisations, or $20 for individuals. The Youth Research Centre is undertaking the evaluation of the Student Action Teams project being conducted by the Victorian Department of Education within the VicSafe strategy. In this project, 20 secondary schools throughout Victoria are being supported to develop action teams of students around community safety issues. The evaluation team (Roger Holdsworth, Helen Stokes, John Stafford and Debra Tyler) have completed one round of visits to the schools to collect early data on team formation, choice of issue and so on. A further visit will be held towards the end of the year. A professional development day for school staff will be held in early September, at which plans for project directions in 2000 will be initiated. A further student and teacher day is planned for later in the year. In addition, a small Issues Paper summarising school projects has been written and circulated to the schools. Illicit Drugs and Driving CDROM Helen Cahill and Heather Hebron have been working on the development of CDROM resource to equip teachers and trainers with information and readings in the area of illicit drugs and driving. The resource is in development with Global Vision for Vic Roads. MindMatters Following the successful development and piloting phases, the MindMatters: National Mental Health in Schools Project will be disseminated to secondary schools across the nation in the year 2000. It is anticipated that schools will receive funding, the MindMatters materials and professional development as part of a dissemination project currently in the planning stage. The organisations conducting the dissemination will be APAPDC (Australian Principals Association Professional Development Council) and Curriculum Corporations. If you are interested to find out about accessing the MindMatters program for your school in the year 2000, contact APAPDC on: ph 08 83747218 email: apapdc@ozemail.com.au If you wish to inquire about professional development support in the area of mental health education contact: Helen Cahill ph 03 93449641 email: h.cahill@edfac.unimelb.edu.au Civics and Citizenship Education 25 Victorian schools received a small grant from the Victorian Department of Education to develop approaches to teaching Civics and Citizenship. A wide variety of approaches has been trialed - from curriculum audits, to development of specific classroom units, whole school programs, and active citizenship through Student Representative Councils and Junior School Councils. Several of the schools feature in a video on Civics and Citizenship Education, produced by Monash University as part of its extended professional development program. The Centre has published a newsletter outlining the approaches being taken in each of the schools. A further professional development day for school staff will be held towards the end of the year. The National Survey into Rural and Remote Education The survey has now been conducted for four months, nationally. There has been a strong response from people in rural and remote areas, particularly those parents, students and teachers involved with school of the air and distance education. Helen Stokes attended the Isolated Childrens and Parents Conference in Katherine, Northern Territory at the beginning of August. The survey and some of its early findings were presented to the conference and delegates were encouraged to complete the surveys. The delegates were in the main parents who school their children at home due to the distance they are located from a school. One of the major issues is the time that it takes for a parent as a home tutor to be the teacher for their children. This was especially difficult for bush mothers who had younger children, home and farm duties to attend to as well. To add to the written and web surveys that have been distributed nationally, a phone in was also conducted on August 24th and 25th. The Phone In was advertised through regional radio stations. Many regional stations conducted interviews with Chris Sidoti (the human rights commissioner) or Helen Stokes to discuss and advertise the phone in. Parents, teachers and students from around Australia phoned in to talk about their views on education. The survey will finish in the middle of September and the final report will be submitted to the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission at the end of October. Activities have included presentations and workshops on the use of roleplay in health education for the Life Education National Conference Brisbane, workshops for Principals, Secondary teachers and Primary teachers on Taking a Whole School Approach to Enhancing Staff Mental Health and a number of school professional development days on the themes of Enhancing Resilience. Upcoming Conference... Culture, Crisis and Education
Comparative Perspectives 27th ANNUAL ANZCIES CONFERENCE Australian and New Zealand Comparative and International Education Society Sponsored by: The Youth Research Centre and The Faculty of Education Keynote Speaker: Professor Fazal Rizvi 2 - 5 December 1999 University College, College Crescent For further information and application forms, please contact: Fiona Clyne or Roger R Woock ph: 9347 2901 email: rogerr@mpx.com.au http://fehps.une.edu.au/anzcies/ANZCIESconf99.html INFOYOUTH Workshop, Korea Roger Holdsworth attended a regional workshop on the UNESCO Infoyouth Project in Seoul in May. This training workshop introduced participants from 14 countries to the CDS-ISIS database. The subsequent discussion continued to shape the Infoyouth Network, which will probably grow through development of dedicated web pages of national and regional information about young people. Watch for developments through the Youth Research Centre and YARN web sites. Parliamentary Education Office National
Forum The Parliamentary Education Office in Canberra drew together state and territory Departmental representatives, along with interested and involved personnel from about four Australian Universities (Roger Holdsworth attended from the YRC), to discuss national directions in supporting and enhancing active student participation. There was much sharing of information and ideas, and a commitment to develop a national statement of purpose, a substantial research agenda and policy commitments. The group - known as the Australian Student Participation Support Group - will maintain contact through the Parliamentary Education Office and work collaboratively on projects of mutual interest. Taking Children Seriously was a national workshop held at the University of Western Sydney - Macarthur in June. Bringing together about 70 people from diverse fields of child welfare, education, health and community development, the workshop marked an important development in "New Childhood Studies" which parallels discussions in the youth field about "Rethinking Youth". Roger Holdsworth presented a paper on 'Taking Young People Seriously Means Giving Them Serious Things To Do' as well as taking part in a panel discussion around the practice of Junior School Councils. It is intended that papers will be compiled in a publication later this year. Transition Project Outcomes and Opportunities In June this year Debra Tyler participated in a forum at the Brotherhood of St Laurence which discussed the recently completed report on their Transition Project. The Transition Project, in the light of declining school retention rates, set out to explore new opportunities for supporting young people who were experiencing difficulty in negotiating their way through the school system and into the work force. The project was located in two Victorian secondary schools, one in metropolitan Melbourne and the other in the Westernport region, in proximity to employment services provided by the Brotherhood. The forum provided an excellent opportunity to brief people from both government and education departments on the outcomes of the project as well as to be able to discuss more fully the particular way this project came together. Rural Youth Information Service National Conference The Rural Youth Information Service National conference was held on July 5th and 6th. It was attended by the RYIS workers from around Australia as well as the different State DETYA personnel who are working with RYIS. Helen Stokes gave the Keynote address at the conference on the theme of young people in rural Australia. She then recorded the proceedings of the conference that centered on how to develop successful RYIS in 25 locations nationally. The conference proceedings and analysis are being distributed to the State youth officers in DETYA and the RYIS workers. Eva-Marie Tveit Eva-Marie Tveit, from Norway is working with us here at the YRC throughout September and October as a visiting scholar. Some of her work on young people's choices has some relevance to our Life-Patterns Project. While in Melbourne, Eva-Marie will also being doing some field work on 'young individual travellers' - although whether there will be as many as there are during the Australian Open is debatable! Johanna Wyn Johanna Wyn, director of the YRC, is currently overseas. Johanna is at the university of British Columbia in Canada where among other things she will be doing some collaborative work with Dianne Looker, who was a visiting academic at the Youth Research Centre a number of years ago. Johanna will be back in January 2000. Bob Semmens Bob Semmens is also overseas to give two papers. He has just completed his stay in the United States at Saint Joseph's University in Philadelphia where he has given a paper on 'Transitioning to Citizenship'. He will be giving the other paper on 'Full-Service Schooling at Risk Students and Democratic Citizenship' at a British Education Conference in England. Bob will also be looking at youth policy and education and alienated students in Britain and the United States. Bob will be back on November 1, 1999. |
top of page
|
Contact the University : Disclaimer & Copyright : Privacy : Accessibility |
|
© The University of Melbourne 1994-2005 |
