This book examines the connections between policy, school experiences, and everyday activities of children growing up in the global city of Melbourne, Australia. It provides an in-depth consideration of Melbourne primary school children’s lifeworlds, exploring everyday stories and practices inside and outside of school. This includes consideration of the diverse ways that educational “success” may be understood in the context of Melbourne, productively moving beyond a narrow focus only on academic achievement. Situated alongside policy and curriculum analysis, the book draws on research in Melbourne Year 4 primary school classrooms in the form of student-completed surveys, classroom ethnographies, and student responses to a learning dialogues activity, as well as video re-enactments of out-of-school life. Through this it explores key aspects of children’s lifeworlds with a focus on school timetabling and pedagogical encounters, school engagement and belonging, and activities and everyday routines outside of school. This book offers a comprehensive and holistic exploration of children’s lifeworlds in Melbourne, drawing connections between children’s lives inside and outside of school, and the broader policy contexts.
Author(s): Clare Bartholomaeus, Nicola Yelland
Series: Global Childhoods in the Asia-Pacific, 3
Publisher: Springer
Year: 2023
Language: English
Pages: 223
City: Singapore
Acknowledgements
Contents
Abbreviations
List of Figures
List of Tables
1 Introducing Children’s Lifeworlds in the Global City of Melbourne
1.1 Education, Schooling, and Educational “Success”
1.2 Global Cities
1.2.1 Melbourne as a Global City
1.3 (Re)presenting Children’s Lifeworlds
1.4 The Global Childhoods Project in Melbourne
1.4.1 Schools
1.4.2 Research Methods
1.5 Outline of the Book
References
2 The Context of Children’s Lifeworlds in Melbourne
2.1 Demographic Overview of Children in Melbourne
2.1.1 Population
2.1.2 Culture, Languages, and Religions
2.1.3 Home and Family Life
2.2 Schools
2.2.1 School Systems in Melbourne, Victoria
2.2.2 Students
2.2.3 Teachers and School Staff
2.2.4 Policy, Curriculum, and Assessment
2.3 Out-of-School Activities
2.3.1 Leisure and Non-academic Organised Activities
2.3.2 Homework
2.3.3 Tutoring and Organised Academic Activities
2.4 Summary
References
3 The Structure of Schooling in Melbourne: Timetabling and Routines
3.1 Timetables as Scheduled
3.2 Timetables in Practice
3.2.1 Following Scheduled Timetables
3.2.2 Beyond Scheduled Timetables
3.2.3 Students’ Varied Learning Within Timetables
3.3 Summary
References
4 Pedagogical Encounters: Teaching and Learning in Melbourne Classrooms
4.1 The Curriculum and the Victorian Teaching and Learning Model
4.2 School Context, Teaching Teams, and Pedagogical Possibilities
4.3 Pedagogical Encounters in the Classrooms
4.3.1 Learning the Concepts and Skills: Present and Practise
4.3.2 Applying the Concepts and Skills: Inquiries and Topics for Individual and Group Interests
4.4 Pedagogical Encounters in Specialist Subjects
4.5 Summary
References
5 School Engagement and Orientations to Educational “Success” in Melbourne
5.1 School Subject and Activity Preferences
5.2 Views on Learning at School
5.3 Feelings About School
5.4 Career Aspirations
5.5 Summary
References
6 School Belonging and Wellbeing: Everyday Stories and Practices in Melbourne
6.1 Students’ Self-reported Sense of School Belonging and Student Identity
6.2 Belonging and Wellbeing in Classroom Contexts
6.2.1 Student–Teacher Relationships
6.2.2 Wellbeing as Learning Content
6.2.3 My Place, My Culture: Cultural Belonging in Classroom Topics
6.3 Summary
References
7 Screens, Play, Sport, and Homework: Children’s Out-of-School Activities in Melbourne
7.1 Children’s Reported Out-of-School Activities
7.2 Re-enactments of Out-of-School Life
7.2.1 Madison’s Week
7.2.2 Seb’s Week
7.3 Summary
References
8 Reflecting on Children’s Lifeworlds in the Global City of Melbourne
8.1 Summary of Chapters
8.2 Children’s Lifeworlds and Educational “Success”
8.2.1 A More Productive View of Educational “Success”
8.2.2 Beyond Learning Concepts and Skills to Applying
8.2.3 Connecting Learning in and Beyond School
8.3 Looking to the Future
References
Index
