Janet Dutton

Macquarie University · School of Education

In recent years, laptop and ‘Bring Your Own Device’ (BYOD) programs have become an integral part of teaching and learning in many Australian schools. For history teachers, the presence of BYOD in the classroom potentially provides the opportunity to align two key teaching goals: historical research skills; and information, communication and technol...

The INSITE (In-School Initial Teacher Education) executive mentoring and coaching program seeks to combine the key influencing factors (as identified within the research literature) for successful transition into, and retention in, the teaching profession. The program provides support that begins at the commencement of an Initial Teacher Education...

Quality literature is a natural fit when choosing resources to support learning in early years settings. This qualitative research reports how literary texts can be used to foster EAL/D students’ poetry writing and represent their identity. During professional learning, teachers were supported to select a range of engaging literary texts and design...

Over the past thirty years, there has been a growing body of research investigating the efficacy of pedagogical interventions to enhance the historical literacy skills of primary and secondary school students. However, there exists no systematic review or meta-analysis summarising the impact of such research or the efficacy of interventions trialle...

Teacher professional development in writing is an increasing area of interest due to the complex nature of the profession including learning needs of students and the demands of external assessment regimes in the contemporary landscape. However, professional development often denies the contextual experiences and expertise of teachers in favor of p...

This qualitative, ethnographic research highlights how drama pedagogy using translanguaging-based Readers Theatre supports students learning English as an Additional Language or Dialect (EAL/D) to develop knowledge of language central to their engagement with learning (Authors, 2020). Using socio-spatial theory of Lefebvre (1991) and Soja (Annals o...

Many studies have reported the disruption and anxiety associated with initial teacher education programs across the world lurching in and out of online and remote teaching because of COVID-19 related lockdowns. Few studies, however, have homed in on the day-today experiences of teacher educators in particular disciplinary specialisms or 'methods',...

School leaders increasingly view inquiry-based professional learning as a means to address diverse aspirations concerning teacher development, school improvement, and regulatory requirements. This qualitative, case study uses interview data to investigate the experiences of school leaders during a one-year cycle of Practitioner Inquiry: Teacher as...

Many studies have reported on the disruption and anxiety associated with initial teacher education programs across the world lurching in and out of online and remote teaching because of COVID-19 related lockdowns. Few studies, however, home in on the day-to-day experiences of teacher educators in particular disciplinary specialisms/methods, or expl...

Australian students come from a wide range of linguistic and cultural backgrounds with each context providing unique challenges. Tensions however exist between the intentions to address diversity and the competing influence of a high-stakes context that prioritizes monolingual classroom practices and diminishes teachers’ use of engaging pedagogy. V...

Students in Australian classrooms come from a range of linguistic and cultural backgrounds. Tensions however exist between the intentions to address diversity and the competing influence of a high-stakes context that prioritises monolingual practices, and often diminishes teachers’ use of engaging, inclusive pedagogy (Berliner, 2011; Dutton & Rusht...

This paper reports on selected findings from a research study with 211 secondary school English teachers in New South Wales (NSW), Australia. A questionnaire was utilised to gather evidence of teachers’ perspectives on teaching, including the continued salience of their initial motivations for entering the teaching profession and their career inten...

English teaching is a career chosen for passionate reasons relating to love for the subject, belief in the importance of teaching and the capacity to make a difference to the lives of all students. The decision to teach is strongly shaped by the ‘service theme’ (Lortie, 1975) which manifests itself in the desire to help students overcome barriers,...

Principles around learning language and the relationship between home and school discourse influence the focus on understanding and acknowledging the language and literacy practices of students and their communities (Bernstein, 1990; Halliday, 2004; Martin & Rose, 2008; Painter, 1996 and Williams, 2000). Approaches to pedagogy are underpinned prima...

Principles around learning language and the relationship between home and school discourse influence the focus on understanding and acknowledging the language and literacy practices of students and their communities (Bernstein, 1990; Halliday, 2004; Martin & Rose, 2008; Painter, 1996 and Williams, 2000). Approaches to pedagogy are underpinned prima...

This workshop outlines our research which explores the use of the translanguaging space (Li Wei, 2017) in confirming identity and student agency and developing a creative pedagogy. In the ethno-graphic, multi-site case study, (Dutton & Rushton, 2018) we explored artefacts which teachers offered at key junctures in their work. These included reflect...

This chapter provides a comprehensive overview of research informed approaches to lesson and unit planning in subject English. It offers authentic, annotated examples of a range of teaching resources including lesson plans, scope and sequence and units of work developed by the collaborating authors as well as a range of scaffolded activities. Pre-s...

Against the backdrop of recent research into effective models of Initial Teacher Education (ITE) and the persistent international debates and policy reform agendas around raising teacher quality, the purpose of this chapter is two-fold. Firstly, it describes and theorises an innovative model of ITE for pre-service teachers that is underpinned by th...

Against the backdrop of recent research into effective models of ITE and the persistent international debates and policy reform agendas around raising teacher quality, the purpose of this chapter is two-fold. Firstly, it describes and theorises an innovative model of ITE for pre-service secondary English teachers at the University of Sydney, Aust...

Read article at: https://www.aate.org.au/documents/item/1758 Abstract: This paper reports on the findings of a study of 211 secondary school English teachers in New South Wales, Australia. The study aimed to gather data on English teachers’ work and lives, including their perspectives on workload, motivation, work satisfaction, wellbeing, and care...

Since the introduction of the first secondary school English syllabus in New South Wales (NSW) in the early years of the 20th century, Shakespearean drama has enjoyed an uninterrupted mandatory status for students in junior secondary English and the higher-level courses in the senior secondary years. In more than 100 years of a prescriptive model o...

The ubiquitous use of mass testing regimes in school-based education throughout the Western world continues to be controversial and contested (Biesta, 2017; Ozoliņs, 2017; Stolz and Webster, 2017). Currently, the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) and Trends in Internation...

“Valuing the linguistic and cultural heritage of students is an important way to develop inclusivity and connectedness and to promote wellbeing and engagement with learning. By fostering an inclusive creative pedagogy, teachers can meet the needs of students from a range of linguistic, cultural and social backgrounds.” The concept of Identity Tex...

The affordances of inquiry and arts-based pedagogy in Initial Teacher Education (ITE) have been extensively theorised and investigated in the international research literature in the field (cf. Bullough & Stokes, 1994; Connelly & Clandinin, 1998; Craig, 2005; Ewing, 2011). This paper explores a distinctive model of ITE for pre-service secondary Eng...

English teachers often feel blamed for low results on high-stakes standardised literacy tests such as Australia’s National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN). Faced with pressure for their students to produce high scores, teachers can react by making changes to both content and strategies which result in a narrowing of curriculum a...

This paper reports on a strand of a larger research study which investigated Australian English teachers' perspectives on their working lives. In this paper, we share the views and voices of English teachers in response to questions about the role, utility and impact of NAPLAN tests on teaching and learning in English classrooms.

This paper presents the key findings from a research study with 211 secondary school English teachers in New South Wales, Australia. The study was designed to gather empirical evidence of secondary English teachers’ perceptions of and attitudes towards teaching: their beliefs, values and goals; their levels of satisfaction with their professional r...

Teachers are passionate about their subject, they know ‘how to’ experiment themselves and they are cognisant of the benefits experimentation has for the creative process and product. The purpose of this paper is to outline the key drivers of creativity development in the twenty-first century, discuss the barriers to risk-taking, and to suggest a ra...

A submission to the NESA consultation on the Draft Stage 6 English Examination Specifications, June 2017.