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The establishment of these networks and communities, however, depends upon a conscious and explicit process of capturing data, systematising this information as information, and synthesizing information as knowledge. To the extent that knowledge management principles are concerned with the capturing, creation and facilitation of knowledge and social capital, they provide an essential link between the documentation of innovative teacher practice and the creation of sustainable communities.
Understanding the context in which pedagogical knowledge is created and shared involves analysing the people, technologies, structures and processes involved, and also recognising that various types of knowledge exist in any given environment. Within this project, knowledge management refers to the complex ways in which the pedagogical insights of teachers can ultimately be harnessed to inform in an explicit way the communities of practice of which they are a part. Such communities are defined not only by the effective documenting and sharing of explicit knowledge, but by the specific processes and relationships of collaboration which themselves facilitate new knowledge and, more broadly, developing social capital.
This project explores an alternative ‘transformative’ curriculum which can supplement the enduring curriculum forms, building on their strengths and ameliorating their weaknesses, such as traditional curriculum which works only for those whose identities happen to fit with the tenor of the curriculum—those from families who are imbued with the values of institutionalised learning, those who enjoy the very narrow range of thinking capacities measured by traditional tests, those most comfortable and capable of picking up the cues in classroom discourse and those who have the time and are provided the encouragement to do homework and to read at home. The intended effect of transformative curriculum is a community of productive diversity, starting with the premise that the lived experiences learners bring to the educational setting are inherently and profoundly diverse.
To learn effectively, any learner has to have a sense of belonging in that curriculum—belonging in the social environment of the school, belonging in the content of the curriculum and belonging by participating in ways of knowing which are valued. At the level of social environment, an educational setting needs to be welcoming and inclusive. At the level of curriculum content, one of the key learning resources needs to be the learner’s own knowledge and capabilities.
And at the epistemological level, the curriculum needs to be able to recognise and build upon a variety of ways of knowing, however these might be conceptualised, in terms of ‘learning styles’ or ‘multiple intelligences’ for instance. This project puts this theory into practice through the development of an appropriate pedagogy which applies what has been learned, as well as recognises new ways of knowing and acting, which is vital in an era that thrives on innovation and spawns complexity.
The project investigates the new learning of today and in the near future which is less about imparting defined knowledge and skills and more about shaping a kind of person: somebody who knows what they don’t know; knows how to learn what they need to know; knows how to create knowledge through problem solving; knows how to create knowledge by drawing on informational and human resources around them; knows how to make knowledge collaboratively; knows how to nurture, mentor, and teach others; and knows how to document and pass on personal knowledge.
Researchers working in this field include Bill Martin and
Mary Kalantzis.
Current Projects
Pedagogies for eLearning: A Critical Analysis of Strategies for Effective Use of Information and Communications Technologies for Teaching and Learning
For full details on this project please see the Pedagogies for eLearning website.
Researchers:
Chief Investigators: Prof. Mary Kalantzis and Prof. Nicola Yelland
Partner Investigator: Dr Bill Cope
Senior Research Fellow: Dr Peter Burrows
Research Fellow: Dr Les Morgan
Funding Body:
Australian Research Council - Discovery Project
Timeline:
January 2005–December 2007
Description:
This study aims at investigating, documenting and critically analysing pedagogical strategies for effective use of ICT and their impacts on students' outcomes. The significance of this study is that it will allow data, findings and conclusions related to an investigation of 'the micro-dynamics of learning' in four classrooms in the middle years across 2 schools.
The project involves systematic observation and comparison of 'pedagogical moves' made by the same teachers using the same content knowledge and in the same demographic setting in conventional and elearning milieus. This will be achieved via interviews, focus groups, artefact analysis (Cultural Probes), and field notes.
Learning by Design: Creating pedagogical frameworks for knowledge building in the 21st century
Researchers:
Chief Investigators: Prof. Mary Kalantzis and Prof. Nicola Yelland
Partner Investigator: Dr Bill Cope
Senior Research Fellow: Dr Peter Burrows
Research Fellow: Dr Les Morgan
For full details on this project please see the L-by-D website.
Funding Body:
Australian Research Council - Linkage Project
Four Industry Partners (see the L-by-D website)
Timeline:
July 2005–June 2008
Description:
The research will investigate the ways in which 'middle-years' teachers
design, record and enact their curriculum, searching for evidence
of a relationship between pedagogical choices and learner outcomes.
From these investigations, and drawing on the theory of Multiliteracies,
a tool will be developed to prompt more mindful and context-appropriate
pedagogical choices, while encouraging teachers to document and share
their practices. This will result in a body of rigorous and shareable
knowledge and know-how, potentially improving opportunities and educational
outcomes for all Australian students.
Towards the ‘Semantic Web’: Documents and Publishing in the Era of Digital Text
Researchers:
Chief Investigators: Prof. Mary Kalantzis, Prof. Margaret Jackson
and Prof. Bill Martin
Partner Investigator: Dr Bill Cope
Researcher: Gus Gollings
APAI: Liam Magee
For full details on this project please see the Semantic Web website
Funding Body:
Australian Research Council - Linkage Project
Fuji-Xerox Australia
Timeline:
2006–2008
Description:
We are in the midst of a shift in the way linguistic and imaged texts are created which could arguably be as significant as Gutenberg's invention of print in the fifteenth century.
This project will investigate recent developments in digital document
production and workflow in the light of the development of the semantic
web. Beyond the Internet, these technologies are rapidly proving to
be fundamental to traditional content creation (e.g. authoring and
typesetting), manufacturing (e.g. to print and electronic formats)
and dissemination (e.g. publishing) industries. The project will map
this rapidly changing technical, commercial and policy environment.
It will conduct case studies of change in print rooms at the cutting
edge of change, and act as an agent of change in the transformation
of traditional graphic communications industries in Australia.
Digital Literacies
Researchers:
Chief Investigator: Prof. Mary Kalantzis
Partner Investigator: Dr Bill Cope
Senior Research Fellow and Project Manager: Dr Helen Smith
Research Assistant: Jacky Forsyth
For full details on this project please see the Digital Literacies website.
Funding Body:
Australian Research Council - Discovery Project
Timeline:
January 2006–December 2008
Description:
This Australian Research Council Discovery project explores the impact
of two pivotal and closely related aspects of the new communications
environment: 1) multimodality and 2) digital text. The project works
with Victorian schools reflecting a range of socioeconomic backgrounds
to analyse the demands of the new literacy, describe the ways in which
teachers respond to these demands to extend literacy pedagogy.
Microsoft Partners in Learning: Australian Evaluation Project
Researchers:
Prof. Mary Kalantzis, Prof. Nicola Yelland and Dr Helen Smith
For full details on this project please see the Microsoft PiL website
Funding Body:
Microsoft Pty Ltd
Timeline:
July 2005–June 2010
Description:
Microsoft Partners in Learning (PiL) is a global ICT initiative to which Microsoft has committed US$253 million. The underlying rationale for the PiL project, as outlined by Microsoft, is expanding access to digital opportunities. In Australia, Microsoft has committed more than $10 million in cash and resourcesover the next five years (see http://www.microsoft.com/australia/education/pil/).
By investing in a series of programs and investing in software, ICT training and professional development, Microsoft is offering incentives for state/territory departments of education to further invest in elearning, and offering teachers who act as technology and educational change agents at their schools recognition and involvement in global PiL events.
The Microsoft Australia PiL Project has contracted RMIT University in collaboration with Victoria University to conduct a national evaluation study of the PiL projects being conducted by the Australian state/territory departments of education.
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