Australian Journal of Education

This didactic paper is intended as a guide to the use of microcomputer statistical analysis packages for researchers who have selected loglinear analysis as appropriate for their problem. It is assumed that readers will be familiar with the statistical theory of loglinear analysis as treated in Kennedy (1988) and Busk and Marascuilo (1989). The first part of this paper describes the application of one popular package to a fairly straightforward problem. This is followed by a critical survey of the features available in four of the leading packages. A discussion of the survey's findings and some suggestions for further development are included.

In recent years, the loglinear model has been proposed and used for analysing frequency data in multidimensional contingency tables. The primary focus of the literature has been on model building and only secondarily on hypothesis testing and estimation. This paper extends Kennedy's (1988) description by presenting post hoc procedures for statistically evaluating treatment effects, contrasts, and confidence intervals. It illustrates methods for main effect and interaction contrasts and pays special attention to odds ratios and their interval estimates. Procedures are described for treating the variables as interdependent and for the case where there are independent and dependent variables—both ordered and unordered.

This article maintains that the principles of J.S. Mill on liberal feminism are still relevant and have not yet been fully implemented. Mill's concern was for sexual equality in all its forms. He perceived that feminine character was the outcome of an artificial system of cultivation via education, and that cultural conditioning produces sexual temperament appropriate to a culturally customary role. This is still a vital contribution to current debate. The body of the article develops a Millian account of equality of opportunity and discrimination, and a critique of current practical measures in the field of sexual equality.

The role of schools in perpetuating social inequalities has come under increasing scrutiny in recent years. However, less attention has been paid to the impact of teacher education programs in influencing teacher attitudes which can contribute to discriminatory practices. To begin to address this question in relation to gender equity, attitudes of 751 teacher education students to traditional sex-role stereotypes were measured on a 32-item questionnaire. One three-way ANOVA was conducted on the total score (all items summed) and another on each item. The independent variables were age, gender and length of enrolment of the student. A consistent main effect for gender was obtained; women were more egalitarian in their attitudes than men. There was, however, no effect for length of enrolment. This was interpreted to indicate that the current teacher education program in which the students were enrolled had a limited impact on traditional gender-related stereotypes.

In spite of the lack of supporting research data, those responsible for education throughout Australia at both federal and state levels have released policies on integration; and there is a trend towards moving students with disabilities out of special education facilities into regular school settings. This paper reviews the findings of Australian research on integration, identifies deficiencies, and points to future directions that research might take if integration is to proceed with the backing of relevant data. A major deficiency is seen in available statistical information, so that it is difficult to estimate the real impact of integration on education systems. Although studies so far reveal some success in integration of disabled students, this depends on individual characteristics, on early educational experiences, and on the provision of support services in the school. Attitudes of school staff are generally positive towards the concept of integration, but this is conditional on the availability of adequate resources and support. Several areas for future research are identified, including longitudinal research, individual case studies, and action-based projects.

This paper reports research which investigated the possibility that the normal operation of home-school relations policies may increase educational inequality. In most schools, the site for home-school relations work is the school. Parents are invited to attend the school for various purposes (e.g. information evenings) for guidance as to how to assist their child's learning or to assist in classrooms. The parents who respond to these invitations are likely to be those who are more confident in dealing with the school and who offer more support to their children's learning at home. As a result of their visits, they may gain information and skills which benefit their own children's schooling through the help which they give at home. There is the possibility that there may be teacher expectation effects advantageous to the children of the high-contact parents. The research investigated these possibilities by examining the operation of home-reading programs in the preparatory (Prep) level classrooms of five disadvantaged primary schools in Melbourne in 1984. Parents were interviewed and teachers made systematic assessments of the children's reading competence and ratings of the supportiveness of the home environment for school learning of each child. Initial analysis of the data suggested that the above possibilities may be true. The level of contact of the parents with the school was predictive of the children's reading competences, after taking into account the support given by the families for the children's reading development. The three-year follow-up showed that advantages in reading achievement remained for the children of the high contact parents, controlling for their Prep level competences and home background support for school achievement.

The relationship between young Australians' intentions to enter the full-time workforce immediately following completion of secondary school and their success in doing so is examined. In addition, the effects of particular social structures and academic resources on these intentions are considered. Recent theoretical developments in the conceptualisation of the relationships between attitudes and behaviour, the intention to perform the behaviour and the behaviour itself underline the argument. The analysis reveals that, while youths' own intentions do predict behaviour, they are not a sufficient cause of this behaviour. The expectations of key figures in the interpersonal environment, youths' own attitudes, their prior academic performance and their experience of unemployment all assist in explaining career beginnings.

Target students are defined as those who dominate interactions with the teacher, usually in whole-class interactions by asking and responding to questions. In this study of five Year 8 mathematics classes, approximately five target students were evident in three of five participant classes. The majority of the target students were high ability males. Target student involvement was facilitated by the behaviours of teachers and students and management problems which prevailed in each of the three classes. The two other classes provided a marked contrast to those which contained target students. In one class, the teacher systematically involved a larger number of students in whole-class interactions and, in the other, there were few whole-class interactions. The disproportionate involvement of target students is regarded as problematic because of the relatively high proportion of time allocated to whole-class activities.