In Melbourne, the month of May signals the end of autumn and that the academic semester is in ful... more In Melbourne, the month of May signals the end of autumn and that the academic semester is in full swing. The mornings are chilly and it's difficult to get out of bed. At the other end of the day, the clocks have been wound back and it gets dark early. Like the lightness of summer, all the welcoming events for new students have disappeared and across the campus the first years are assumed to have settled in to the rhythm of university life. To-do lists in iPhones and on scraps of paper pinned to notice boards detail all the reading that needs to be done; the meeting times with other students to complete assignments; the lab report due dates and essay criteria. The gloss of being a new university student has dulled and the faults of new friends are becoming apparent. It's the season for catching colds, and for whatever other lurking health concerns to come to the fore. There are fewer parties now. The once distant exams no longer seem so far away, and most have turned their attention to their studies as the pressure to measure up, to perform and to produce intensifies.
In this paper we narrate a story of working on a large project funded by an Australian Research C... more In this paper we narrate a story of working on a large project funded by an Australian Research Council Linkage grant-the 'Keeping Connected: Young People, Identity and Schooling' project. 1 The purpose of the study is to consider the social connection and schooling of young people who have experienced long-term chronic illness. While the research involves both quantitative and qualitative elements, the qualitative component is the largest and involves the most researcher time and diversity. At the early stage of the project, three of the researchers working on the qualitative team consider why the study was framed as a series of case studies rather than as ethnography. The second issue considered in this paper is the different approaches to data collection, data analysis and truth claims we might take.
Plagued by doubt and methodological unease, two researchers from a large Australian study resolve... more Plagued by doubt and methodological unease, two researchers from a large Australian study resolve their quandary by revisiting methodological literature related to narrative inquiry, visual approaches and contemporary interviewing to find that the application of poststructuralist theory to methodology provides a useful way of addressing their concerns. Before embarking on extensive writing about the project, they trouble issues of data authenticity, analytic integrity and the problem of voice. The main value of this deliberation is its applicability to the wider discourse about contemporary qualitative inquiry that other researchers facing analytical dilemmas may also find helpful.
Australia's legal and policy frameworks serve to exclude from education those children and young ... more Australia's legal and policy frameworks serve to exclude from education those children and young people who live with challenging and chronic health conditions. The Australian experience is detailed here because it offers insight for education systems of other nations into the consequences of systemic oversight and complicated legal requirements resulting in educational exclusion. Education systems in Australia have been left increasingly vulnerable to litigation by a failure to adequately address the education of these students. However, no specific exclusionary barriers or practices have been enacted -it is more a matter of neglect and oversight. This investigation also serves as a salutary warning for other nations about the significance of this expanding yet barely visible educational cohort. A recently completed study was designed to establish an empirical base about these students and their education because so little is known. The database project closely examined the international literature from a range of fields and a national database established by a philanthropic organisation that works closely with Australian paediatric hospitals. The purpose of this essay is to connect this recent investigation with the legal framework and policy silences to depict how education is not yet meeting the educational entitlements of this cohort of students.
Australia's legal and policy frameworks serve to exclude from education those children and young ... more Australia's legal and policy frameworks serve to exclude from education those children and young people who live with challenging and chronic health conditions. The Australian experience is detailed here because it offers insight for education systems of other nations into the consequences of systemic oversight and complicated legal requirements resulting in educational exclusion. Education systems in Australia have been left increasingly vulnerable to litigation by a failure to adequately address the education of these students. However, no specific exclusionary barriers or practices have been enacted -it is more a matter of neglect and oversight. This investigation also serves as a salutary warning for other nations about the significance of this expanding yet barely visible educational cohort. A recently completed study was designed to establish an empirical base about these students and their education because so little is known. The database project closely examined the international literature from a range of fields and a national database established by a philanthropic organisation that works closely with Australian paediatric hospitals. The purpose of this essay is to connect this recent investigation with the legal framework and policy silences to depict how education is not yet meeting the educational entitlements of this cohort of students.
This article investigates why young people with significant and continuing health conditions can ... more This article investigates why young people with significant and continuing health conditions can easily be overlooked in education. The Keeping Connected study from Australia revealed much about the complicated lives of young people with chronic illness, and several unanticipated ways that health conditions impacted on education are reported here. However, the effect of global education policy also provides some indication that there is a broader explanation that might explain exclusionary practices. The argument that social inclusion policy bears little relation to either social justice or inclusive education is developed. Informed by what young people and their parents reported in this study and by identification of policy conveniences and silences, this article offers some explanation for how the interests of this invisible cohort of young people are not well served. In light of this, it is appropriate to ask whether current understandings of inclusion could be problematised and further developed so that the entitlement of these young people to accommodation and success in education is more generally acknowledged.
In a time where standards and accountability override trust in teachers and principals, mandated ... more In a time where standards and accountability override trust in teachers and principals, mandated versions of pedagogy have recently appeared in the Australian landscape. This article critiques one pedagogical reform initiative and suggests that in performative times, it may be preferable for principals and teachers to speak 'over' reform than to speak 'back' to it. While reference to competency standards increasingly replaces discussion about professionalism, the argument is developed here that key elements of professionalism include trust, agency, identity and judgement, which are excluded from the standards discourse. The article proposes that the tenuous hold teachers have on professionalism might be strengthened by critical school leaders adept at navigating their way around performative demands and who encourage teachers to speak 'over' codes about appropriate behaviour to instead explore what it means to be a teacher professional.
This article reports on a five-year Australian study where pre-service primary and secondary teac... more This article reports on a five-year Australian study where pre-service primary and secondary teachers were encouraged to enhance their creativity through the development of ethnographic operatic performances. The creativity focus of this project was the important aspect of risk-taking and daring. The methodological basis for the study is ethnographic and narrative methods of enquiry were employed. Rather than learning 'about' curriculum and pedagogy, participants were encouraged to learn 'through' action and involvement. A new conceptualization of performance pedagogy is provided as well as a discussion of two different interpretations of performativity. A research narrative about the development of the ethnographic operatic performances is told and the implications for creativity in education are discussed.
In Melbourne, the month of May signals the end of autumn and that the academic semester is in ful... more In Melbourne, the month of May signals the end of autumn and that the academic semester is in full swing. The mornings are chilly and it's difficult to get out of bed. At the other end of the day, the clocks have been wound back and it gets dark early. Like the lightness of summer, all the welcoming events for new students have disappeared and across the campus the first years are assumed to have settled in to the rhythm of university life. To-do lists in iPhones and on scraps of paper pinned to notice boards detail all the reading that needs to be done; the meeting times with other students to complete assignments; the lab report due dates and essay criteria. The gloss of being a new university student has dulled and the faults of new friends are becoming apparent. It's the season for catching colds, and for whatever other lurking health concerns to come to the fore. There are fewer parties now. The once distant exams no longer seem so far away, and most have turned their attention to their studies as the pressure to measure up, to perform and to produce intensifies.
In this paper we narrate a story of working on a large project funded by an Australian Research C... more In this paper we narrate a story of working on a large project funded by an Australian Research Council Linkage grant-the 'Keeping Connected: Young People, Identity and Schooling' project. 1 The purpose of the study is to consider the social connection and schooling of young people who have experienced long-term chronic illness. While the research involves both quantitative and qualitative elements, the qualitative component is the largest and involves the most researcher time and diversity. At the early stage of the project, three of the researchers working on the qualitative team consider why the study was framed as a series of case studies rather than as ethnography. The second issue considered in this paper is the different approaches to data collection, data analysis and truth claims we might take.
Plagued by doubt and methodological unease, two researchers from a large Australian study resolve... more Plagued by doubt and methodological unease, two researchers from a large Australian study resolve their quandary by revisiting methodological literature related to narrative inquiry, visual approaches and contemporary interviewing to find that the application of poststructuralist theory to methodology provides a useful way of addressing their concerns. Before embarking on extensive writing about the project, they trouble issues of data authenticity, analytic integrity and the problem of voice. The main value of this deliberation is its applicability to the wider discourse about contemporary qualitative inquiry that other researchers facing analytical dilemmas may also find helpful.
Australia's legal and policy frameworks serve to exclude from education those children and young ... more Australia's legal and policy frameworks serve to exclude from education those children and young people who live with challenging and chronic health conditions. The Australian experience is detailed here because it offers insight for education systems of other nations into the consequences of systemic oversight and complicated legal requirements resulting in educational exclusion. Education systems in Australia have been left increasingly vulnerable to litigation by a failure to adequately address the education of these students. However, no specific exclusionary barriers or practices have been enacted -it is more a matter of neglect and oversight. This investigation also serves as a salutary warning for other nations about the significance of this expanding yet barely visible educational cohort. A recently completed study was designed to establish an empirical base about these students and their education because so little is known. The database project closely examined the international literature from a range of fields and a national database established by a philanthropic organisation that works closely with Australian paediatric hospitals. The purpose of this essay is to connect this recent investigation with the legal framework and policy silences to depict how education is not yet meeting the educational entitlements of this cohort of students.
Australia's legal and policy frameworks serve to exclude from education those children and young ... more Australia's legal and policy frameworks serve to exclude from education those children and young people who live with challenging and chronic health conditions. The Australian experience is detailed here because it offers insight for education systems of other nations into the consequences of systemic oversight and complicated legal requirements resulting in educational exclusion. Education systems in Australia have been left increasingly vulnerable to litigation by a failure to adequately address the education of these students. However, no specific exclusionary barriers or practices have been enacted -it is more a matter of neglect and oversight. This investigation also serves as a salutary warning for other nations about the significance of this expanding yet barely visible educational cohort. A recently completed study was designed to establish an empirical base about these students and their education because so little is known. The database project closely examined the international literature from a range of fields and a national database established by a philanthropic organisation that works closely with Australian paediatric hospitals. The purpose of this essay is to connect this recent investigation with the legal framework and policy silences to depict how education is not yet meeting the educational entitlements of this cohort of students.
This article investigates why young people with significant and continuing health conditions can ... more This article investigates why young people with significant and continuing health conditions can easily be overlooked in education. The Keeping Connected study from Australia revealed much about the complicated lives of young people with chronic illness, and several unanticipated ways that health conditions impacted on education are reported here. However, the effect of global education policy also provides some indication that there is a broader explanation that might explain exclusionary practices. The argument that social inclusion policy bears little relation to either social justice or inclusive education is developed. Informed by what young people and their parents reported in this study and by identification of policy conveniences and silences, this article offers some explanation for how the interests of this invisible cohort of young people are not well served. In light of this, it is appropriate to ask whether current understandings of inclusion could be problematised and further developed so that the entitlement of these young people to accommodation and success in education is more generally acknowledged.
In a time where standards and accountability override trust in teachers and principals, mandated ... more In a time where standards and accountability override trust in teachers and principals, mandated versions of pedagogy have recently appeared in the Australian landscape. This article critiques one pedagogical reform initiative and suggests that in performative times, it may be preferable for principals and teachers to speak 'over' reform than to speak 'back' to it. While reference to competency standards increasingly replaces discussion about professionalism, the argument is developed here that key elements of professionalism include trust, agency, identity and judgement, which are excluded from the standards discourse. The article proposes that the tenuous hold teachers have on professionalism might be strengthened by critical school leaders adept at navigating their way around performative demands and who encourage teachers to speak 'over' codes about appropriate behaviour to instead explore what it means to be a teacher professional.
This article reports on a five-year Australian study where pre-service primary and secondary teac... more This article reports on a five-year Australian study where pre-service primary and secondary teachers were encouraged to enhance their creativity through the development of ethnographic operatic performances. The creativity focus of this project was the important aspect of risk-taking and daring. The methodological basis for the study is ethnographic and narrative methods of enquiry were employed. Rather than learning 'about' curriculum and pedagogy, participants were encouraged to learn 'through' action and involvement. A new conceptualization of performance pedagogy is provided as well as a discussion of two different interpretations of performativity. A research narrative about the development of the ethnographic operatic performances is told and the implications for creativity in education are discussed.
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Papers by Julie White