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1 3.5 SPOTLIGHT: Research in Special Education (RISE) Members of the Research in Special Education (RISE) group are academics, post graduate students, professional educators and other stakeholders with interests in a diverse range of areas associated with special and inclusive education. Established in 2008, our aim is to produce and disseminate high-quality research that informs and enhances effective, inclusive education for children and young people with diverse learning needs across settings. 2016 was a productive year for the RISE group, characterised by a steady stream of high quality publications and conference presentations, ongoing advocacy and engagement with industry stakeholders, and continued efforts to align our research agenda with Flinders’ highly-regarded undergraduate and postgraduate courses in special education. RISE members made a range of contributions to public and policy discourse related to inclusive education, with highlights including Peter Walker’s thought-provoking TEDx talk in October on Inclusive Education: A Way to Think Differently About Difference, which he also discussed on ABC Radio. Contributions by individual members, including research publications, are listed in other sections of the FEFRI report; this spotlight presents a summary and selected highlights of RISE in 2016. Research Highlights and Strengths A team of RISE researchers completed a national survey study examining the perceptions, practices, and professional learning needs of educators of students with disabilities in a range of specialist settings, related to the Australian Curriculum. This project was funded by an Australian Association of Special Education (AASE) National Research Award, and we presented the findings in May at the 2016 AASE national conference in Melbourne. Authors of two research reports currently under review at peer-reviewed journals include Peter Walker, Dr Karyn Carson, Dr Julie McMillan, Dr Jane Jarvis, Anna Noble, Associate Professor Kerry Bissaker, Dr David Armstrong and Associate Professor Carolyn Palmer. Plans are currently underway for a series of follow-up studies expanding on these findings. A significant area of expertise for RISE continues to be the support of students with reading difficulties, and the promotion of high-quality teaching and intervention in reading and language development. In 2016, Anne Bayetto continued her ongoing work with the national Principals as Literacy Leaders (PALL) project, and co-presented a refereed conference paper (Abstract, p.211) in January 2016 to the International Congress for School Effectiveness and Improvement in Glasgow, reporting on nine case studies of schools in Tasmania and Victoria where the principal had undertaken the PALL program. Anne was also Invited by the DECD Director, Primary Years to discuss professional learning of leaders and teachers in the area of reading. Dr Karyn Carson continued her research involving the South Australian Phonological Awareness Databases (SAPAD), a web-based screening and monitoring tool to evaluate phonological awareness for children aged 4-6 years, which she developed through an Establishment Grant (2013-2015). In 2016, over 500 teachers registered to use the tool, and over 2000 assessments were conducted with children across South Australia, Victoria, Tasmania, and New South Wales. Dr Carson received a re-entry fellowship in 2016 to continue her research into raising school- entry reading readiness through kindergarten-wide phonological awareness instruction, with Anne Bayetto as Associate Investigator. She accepted a role as Adjunct Senior Fellow, College of Education, Health and Human Development at the University of Canterbury (NZ) and commenced as an Adjunct Investigator for the Literacy Strand of the ‘A Better Start: E Tipu e Rea’ project, supported by the New Zealand Ministry of Business, Innovation, & Employment (Project total inclusive of three research strands: $34.7millon).

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3.5 SPOTLIGHT: Research in Special Education (RISE)

Members of the Research in Special Education (RISE) group are academics, post graduate students, professional educators and other stakeholders with interests in a diverse range of areas associated with special and inclusive education. Established in 2008, our aim is to produce and disseminate high-quality research that informs and enhances effective, inclusive education for children and young people with diverse learning needs across settings. 2016 was a productive year for the RISE group, characterised by a steady stream of high quality publications and conference presentations, ongoing advocacy and engagement with industry stakeholders, and continued efforts to align our research agenda with Flinders’ highly-regarded undergraduate and postgraduate courses in special education. RISE members made a range of contributions to public and policy discourse related to inclusive education, with highlights including Peter Walker’s thought-provoking TEDx talk in October on Inclusive Education: A Way to Think Differently About Difference, which he also discussed on ABC Radio. Contributions by individual members, including research publications, are listed in other sections of the FEFRI report; this spotlight presents a summary and selected highlights of RISE in 2016.

Research Highlights and Strengths

A team of RISE researchers completed a national survey study examining the perceptions, practices, and professional learning needs of educators of students with disabilities in a range of specialist settings, related to the Australian Curriculum. This project was funded by an Australian Association of Special Education (AASE) National Research Award, and we presented the findings in May at the 2016 AASE national conference in Melbourne. Authors of two research reports currently under review at peer-reviewed journals include Peter Walker, Dr Karyn Carson, Dr Julie McMillan, Dr Jane Jarvis, Anna Noble, Associate Professor Kerry Bissaker, Dr David Armstrong and Associate Professor Carolyn Palmer. Plans are currently underway for a series of follow-up studies expanding on these findings.

A significant area of expertise for RISE continues to be the support of students with reading difficulties, and the promotion of high-quality teaching and intervention in reading and language development.

• In 2016, Anne Bayetto continued her ongoing work with the national Principals as Literacy Leaders (PALL) project, and co-presented a refereed conference paper (Abstract, p.211) in January 2016 to the International Congress for School Effectiveness and Improvement in Glasgow, reporting on nine case studies of schools in Tasmania and Victoria where the principal had undertaken the PALL program. Anne was also Invited by the DECD Director, Primary Years to discuss professional learning of leaders and teachers in the area of reading.

• Dr Karyn Carson continued her research involving the South Australian Phonological Awareness Databases (SAPAD), a web-based screening and monitoring tool to evaluate phonological awareness for children aged 4-6 years, which she developed through an Establishment Grant (2013-2015). In 2016, over 500 teachers registered to use the tool, and over 2000 assessments were conducted with children across South Australia, Victoria, Tasmania, and New South Wales. Dr Carson received a re-entry fellowship in 2016 to continue her research into raising school-entry reading readiness through kindergarten-wide phonological awareness instruction, with Anne Bayetto as Associate Investigator. She accepted a role as Adjunct Senior Fellow, College of Education, Health and Human Development at the University of Canterbury (NZ) and commenced as an Adjunct Investigator for the Literacy Strand of the ‘A Better Start: E Tipu e Rea’ project, supported by the New Zealand Ministry of Business, Innovation, & Employment (Project total inclusive of three research strands: $34.7millon).

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• In June 2016, Dr David Armstrong was invited to attend a special meeting of Dyslexia SA alongside the Minister Hon. Susan Close and Mr John Gardner MP, at which he was congratulated for his contribution and that of RISE to the lives of children affected by dyslexia in SA, including through his publications and work in initial teacher education since 2012. In July, Dr Armstrong was recognised by DECD as having ‘international expertise’ in the area of dyslexia/learning difficulty and invited to steer a teacher workforce initiative to improve practice with children affected by dyslexia. He also submitted a formal proposal to the Minister for a pilot research study involving 20 DECD primary schools to inform a workforce development initiative across all 355 public primary schools in SA.

Another area of research and teaching expertise among RISE members relates to supporting students with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD), their families, and their educators. In 2016, RISE members Associate Professor Kerry Bissaker, Dr Julie McMillan and Dr David Armstrong continued their work with the Autism Professional Learning Project, which was commissioned by the Minister for Education and Child Development. Phase 2 of the project involved the design and delivery of a professional learning program for educators in SA working with students with ASD; in 2016, 33 teachers involved with the project completed a Graduate Certificate in Education (Special Education) at Flinders, and 43 teachers are expected to complete in 2017. This follows previous work by RISE researchers with Phase 1 of the APLP and the evaluation of the federal Positive Partnerships project. In May 2016, Kerry Bissaker gave an invited presentation to the ASPECT conference on Addressing gaps in ASD professional learning in South Australia: Evidence-informed design & delivery.

RISE researchers continue to be active in other fields related to special and inclusive education, including student behaviour, positive mental health, communication disorders and assistive technology, differentiated pedagogy, and gifted education. For example, in February 2016 Dr Julie McMillan gave an invited keynote presentation to the Understanding Behaviour conference series sponsored by Inclusive Directions, on Assessment to develop proactive strategies for supporting positive behaviour. Dr Armstrong collaborated with the Margaret Tobin Centre to design a novel transdisciplinary research project (ReCoN) and is actively seeking funding from the Teacher Health Foundation for this research. Dr Jane Jarvis received a contract from Routledge to co-edit a research text on Gifted Education: Australian and New Zealand Perspectives, in which Lesley Henderson will also have a co-authored chapter. Three RISE members (Peter Walker, Anna Noble and Lesley Henderson) continued their doctoral research throughout 2016, while Nur Azizah completed her PhD with Associate Supervisor Julie McMillan, on School to Work Transition programs for Students with Disabilities in Indonesian Special Schools. Community and Professional Engagement

In June 2016, we held another successful RISE Breakfast, which enabled our researchers to network, share and plan relevant research with industry stakeholders across sectors. Together with our RISE Conference (held in 2015 and 2017), the breakfast provides an excellent opportunity to strengthen and develop our industry partnerships, which have long been a key strength of the special education team at Flinders, and to hear about research priorities from across our diverse field. The 2016 breakfast was held at the Tonsley facility and was attended by 60 representatives from across SA and beyond. Our guest speaker was the Visiting International Researcher, Professor Ralf Schlosser, from Northeastern University and the Boston Children’s Hospital, USA. Professor Schlosser has had a distinguished research career in disability and special education, including investigating innovative intervention strategies to enhance communication skills in children with ASD who are non-verbal, using speech generation

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devices, mobile technologies, and visual immersion techniques. Professor Schlosser’s presentation was particularly well-received by local educators and policymakers.

RISE members continue to contribute to Editorial Boards and as Reviewers for peer-reviewed journals related to special and inclusive education. In 2016, Dr Armstrong commenced as the new Editor of the international Journal of Research in Special Educational Needs (JORSEN). This leadership position emtails membership of the Editorial Advisory Board (Wiley Europe/NASEN) and senior membership of NASEN (National Association of Special Education Needs, a leading UK professional association for teachers in special education). Dr Jane Jarvis continued as Associate Editor of the Australasian Journal of Gifted Education, a role she commenced in 2015. RISE members regularly serve as reviewers for a range of peer-reviewed journals; for example, Dr Karyn Carson is a reviewer for Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools; Speech, Language, and Hearing; and Human Technology. Dr Julie McMillan is a reviewer for the Australasian Journal of Special Education; Augmentative and Alternative Communication; JORSEN; the Journal of Special Education Technology; and the International Journal of Inclusive Education.

Community engagement is a key strength of the RISE team, and this was certainly the case throughout 2016. In his role as SA Chapter President of AASE, Peter Walker provided local leadership and led the development of a professional learning series for educators to engage with current research and evidence-based practices. Lesley Henderson and Dr Jane Jarvis met with the Minister for Education, Hon. Susan Close in June, at her invitation, to discuss ways that DECD schools might better address the needs of gifted or academically advanced students in the context of inclusive approaches. Dr Julie McMillan continues to serve as a member of the Board of Directors for Autism SA. Anne Bayetto continues in her role as Academic Mentor: Director, Speld(SA), which she has held since 1989. RISE members were also actively engaged in providing professional learning presentations and workshops to educators. Selected examples are provided below:

• Carol Le Lant, Jane Jarvis, Anna Noble and Karyn Carson all presented workshops to SA educators on evidence-informed practices for Learning 4 All (Part of Down Syndrome SA). Topics included differentiation for diverse learners, coaching teachers in inclusive practices, supporting students with learning difficulties, and supporting early phonological awareness and reading development.

• Carolyn Palmer, Anna Noble, Peter Walker, and Jane Jarvis all gave invited presentation to local teachers through the Australian Association of Special Education (AASE) – SA Chapter, on topics including the role of the special education teacher, engaging students with disabilities in the Australian Curriculum, and differentiation.

• Jane Jarvis presented invited professional learning workshops related to differentiation to teachers at schools including Seaview High School, Sacred Heart College Senior, St. Mary’s College, and St. John’s Grammar.

• Carol Le Lant presented invited professional learning workshops related to differentiation to teachers at schools including Darlington Primary School, Cedar College, St. Paul’s Lutheran School (with Anna Noble) and Hallett Cove South Primary School.

Over the past few years, the RISE team has prioritized collaborative, cohesive planning to ensure that our research agenda is relevant to policymakers and stakeholders, including diverse children and young people, and enables us to build towards larger, more substantial projects that will broaden our influence on inclusive educational practices. We look forward to continuing our work towards this agenda in the coming years, and appreciate the ongoing support of the FEFRI.

Dr Jane Jarvis and Dr David Armstrong, Co-Chairs