Research

Professional Development for Education Staff in the Pacific

We have researched how best to address tailored education professional development courses for Pacific countries. The subsequent courses have been piloted and are now being implemented in Apia, Samoa and Port Vila, Vanuatu. The courses are accredited under the UN umbrella and address SDG4 goals that aim to ensure the delivery of quality education for all.

The courses:

Certificate in Education Support is designed to develop the skills and knowledge of inclusive education practices for teacher aides and other education support staff. It is based on a ‘Certificate 3’ Australian programme but is contextualised for delivery in each country. It is delivered in local language by local facilitators, and modules are completed ‘on the job’, meaning that participants can still earn while they learn.

Inclusive Classrooms for Professional Learning Programmeis designed to promote inclusive teaching practices for pre-service and in-service teachers. Again, the course is delivered in local language by local facilitators, ensuring sustainability and ongoing support. The 4 modules of learning are also ‘on the job’, which lends itself to assessment tasks being authentic, practical and applicable.

This Project was supported by a grant from the University of Newcastle: SDG Related Research Grants.

Inclusive Education Project in Vanuatu Schools and the Community

The Pacific RISE team is working alongside the Ministry of Education and Training in Vanuatu, supported by the University of Newcastle's HDR students. The project involves assessing the local community's views of how inclusive education should develop and the ways in which the community, schools, and students' attitudes affect this development.

There are several HDR topics that are embedded within the project:

  1. Attitude of Vanuatu Community Members Towards Inclusive Education in Vanuatu Schools
  2. Transforming Disability into Ability through Vocational Training: Revisiting Policies & Legislations, Teaching & Learning Strategies and Community Perceptions
  3. Ni-Vanuatu Female Principals’ Experiences of the Challenges and Opportunities as School Leaders
  4. Innovative Teaching Pedagogy Impact on Diverse Learners: A Contemporary Inclusive Education Practice that Fits Vanuatu Context for Teachers
  1. Vanuatu Inclusive Education Policy: Success and gaps that exist at different levels of education which contributed to the success of policy implementation.

Inclusive Education and Innovative Learning Environments in Samoa and the Solomon Islands

Traditional Pacific teaching methods are typically reflective of didactic ‘chalk and talk’ approaches which require students to sit quietly, copy off the board, rote learn and repeat. This ‘one size fits all’ approach in the Pacific disadvantages many cohorts, particularly those with disability.

This project seeks to develop a model of innovative teaching and learning approaches that can be used as a platform for meaningful development of professional practice across the Pacific. Innovative Learning Environments (ILEs) offer the impetus for that paradigm shift. ILEs offer students and teachers flexibility, agency, and connectedness. Teaching and learning within this structure is collaborative, reflections and inquiries are shared, and communities engaged lead to a more robust, continuously improving community of practice. This project seeks to develop a model of practice that aligns with Pacific ways of teaching and learning to benefit all students.

This project is supported by a grant from the University of Newcastle in partnership with the Maitland Newcastle Catholic Diocese

There is one HDR topic that is embedded within the project:

  1. Fostering Innovative Learning Environment for Including Students with Disability in Solomon Islands

Completed Projects:

Inclusive Education for Children Who Are Blind in Vanuatu

For students who are blind or vision impaired, there continue to be numerous barriers to education, largely due to the lack of specialist support and resources related to the disability specific skills this cohort of learners require to enable their equitable inclusion in education. To gain a better understanding of educational access for children with vision impairment in the Pacific, a study was undertaken in 2022 that focused on the educational experience of children who are vision impaired in Shefa Province, Vanuatu. Seven primary school-aged children with a vision impairment, along with a parent or guardian for each of the participating children, were involved in one on one semi-structured interviews to discover the impact of their vision loss on their sense of educational inclusion.

This research proposed a range of factors, significant to the Vanuatu context, to enable more inclusive learning environments for students with vision impairment.

This study was a partnership between the Vanuatu Ministry of Education and Training, the University of Newcastle, the South Pacific Educators in Vision Impairment (SPEVI) and the Pacific region of the International Council of the Education of the Visually Impaired (ICEVI Pacific).

Evaluation of Inclusive Education practices in Kiribati

Kiribati has received significant Australian aid, which has played a crucial role in shaping policy, funding projects, and managing programs related to inclusive education initiatives. Additionally, the alignment of aid projects with cultural values and the ownership of these projects by the recipient country are important factors for long-term sustainability. The results of a study examined the adoption of practices in Kiribati’s model inclusion school classrooms, highlighting specific strategies and policies that have been implemented to promote inclusive practices. Additionally, the analysis considers the role of the unique elements that have make Kiribati a workable model for inclusive teaching, so that policymakers and educators can gain insights for improving inclusive practices in other Pacific nations.