History: time and place where context matters

Green, Nicole and Reitano, Paul (2012) History: time and place where context matters. In: Joint International Conference of the Australian Association for Research in Education and the Asia Pacific Educational Research Association (AARE 2012): Regional and Global Cooperation in Educational Research, 2-6 Dec 2012, Sydney, Australia.

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Abstract

This paper presents an analysis of data collected during the stages of an ARC Linkage Grant exploring the teaching and the learning of History in early years and primary classrooms located in Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria. Aoki (1991 in Berman) and other postmodern colleagues argue that school curriculum is not simply a technical document specifying content to be covered, outlining prescribed learning outcomes, detailing teaching strategies and stipulating assessment procedures. Curriculum is not static, not an unmoving form that teachers can systematically implement or students can passively receive. Curriculum is the lived experience of teachers and students as they engage together in the learning process. Aoki's work alerts us to our responsibility to ask questions and seek understanding about curriculum implementation and the nature of the educational experience for school communities. As curriculum inquirers, the research team is working within the many layers of the Australia Curriculum (History) context: across three States in urban, regional and remote locations, and among stakeholders - policy makers, professional association members, syllabus developers, school leadership and management, teachers and students. The paper will first discuss the Framework for data collection and analysis. The Framework combines a stage theory of curriculum with Harré & van Langenhove (1999) Positioning Theory, which has been adapted by our colleagues Mary Dixon and Kim Senior. Data have been analysed individually and collectively by the research team. In drawing upon the Framework, we recognize our responsibility to uncover more experientially holistic and sophisticated theoretical understandings. The paper will then share a visual depiction of the findings to date as a way to emphasize the complexity of the many layers of the Australia curriculum (History) context, and the ways in which the storylines and positioning of stakeholders cannot be understood in isolation from current curriculum development, implementation and enactment.

Statistics for this ePrint Item

Item Type:	Conference or Workshop Item (Commonwealth Reporting Category E) (Paper)
Refereed:	No
Item Status:	Live Archive
Additional Information:	AARE does not ask for copyright of refereed papers – copyright remains vested with the author.
Faculty/School / Institute/Centre:	Historic - Faculty of Education (Up to 30 Jun 2013)
Faculty/School / Institute/Centre:	Historic - Faculty of Education (Up to 30 Jun 2013)
Date Deposited:	07 Jun 2013 04:40
Last Modified:	15 Sep 2017 03:57
Fields of Research (2008):	13 Education > 1302 Curriculum and Pedagogy > 130205 Humanities and Social Sciences Curriculum and Pedagogy (excl. Economics, Business and Management) 21 History and Archaeology > 2103 Historical Studies > 210399 Historical Studies not elsewhere classified 13 Education > 1301 Education Systems > 130105 Primary Education (excl. Maori)
Socio-Economic Objectives (2008):	E Expanding Knowledge > 97 Expanding Knowledge > 970113 Expanding Knowledge in Education
URI:	http://eprints.usq.edu.au/id/eprint/23585

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