VCE Extended Investigation A senior secondary study for the 21 st century

1. VCE Extended Investigation • A senior secondary study • for the 21st century

2. Characteristics of the study • Designed for independent learners seeking challenge • No set curriculum • Student led, minimal teacher direction • Formulation of research question and pursuit of findings • Critical thinking • Research methods

3. Assessment in the study • Unit 3: • 3 outcomes = 40% of study score • 2 SACs and CT test • Unit 4: • 2 outcomes = 60% of study score • Externally-assessed Task • Written report • Oral presentation • No statewide written examination

4. Assessment • Validity and reliability • Submission of research questions • Mandated assessment criteria • Critical thinking test • Highly specified conditions of assessment for orals

5. Quality assurance • Fairness • Statistical moderation • internal assessments against external assessments for the group • Checks • Inter-rater reliability • Application of school assessment criteria

6. Authentication • Extended Investigation student journal • Submission of research question • Critical thinking test • Oral defence • Authentication declaration

7. Approval of research question Criteria: •  substantial and significant •  practical, realistic and manageable •  critical distance and an impersonal or objective stance •  systematic and sound research methods •  access to appropriate and relevant primary and secondary sources •  likely to produce a useful result •  clearly and precisely worded •  contained and focused scope •  responsible and ethical research •  sustain student inquiry •  no duplication with any current VCE study

8. Sample research questions • How is awareness of Kyphosis and Scoliosis promoted to young people in Australia and what programs are needed to support young people diagnosed with these conditions? • How does the current model of mental health funding and programs provided by the public health system meet the needs of young people in XXXXXX (city) and what alternative models could be considered? • Has the 21st century brought the need to legalise performance enhancing drugs in sport? • How have Karen refugees been integrated into the XXXXXX (city) community and in what ways have these interactions challenged the perceptions of local residents towards refugees? •  How did the introduction of steam technology to the construction of the Panama Canal affect the development, efficiency and success of the project?

9. What is the difference between Australia's cultural constructs of poverty and those in East Timor? •  Does the use of educational apps on Apple iPads in the junior section of XXXXXX Special School Bundoora have an impact on students' ability to work autonomously whilst engaged in classroom activities? • Examined through poetry with focus on two particular points in time, how has existential thought progressed? • Was Osama bin Laden the most dangerous man alive in the 21st Century to date? •  To what extent do migration waves affect the enrolment at selective entry schools and what predictions can be made about future enrolment? •  Are the promoted strategies of conservation at the Melbourne Zoo an effective method of informing people about the importance of wildlife conservation?

10.  How effective is the Karkarook Park wetland filtration system in improving water quality? A case study. •  Can Israel and a potential future state of Palestine coexist? • What is the effect, if any, on an XXXXX High School middle school student’s academic results when they are using their mobile phones in class? • What change of attitude towards speeding whilst driving do the Transport Accident Commission (TAC) ads have on young XXXXXX High male and female drivers? • How have traditional cultural values and modern feminism shaped the identity and roles of Aboriginal women in contemporary Australia? • How does human presence contribute to environmental degradation? Current and future threats to native flora and fauna in Blind Creek flood area and reserve: a case study.

11. Critical thinking • Skills of questioning, evaluation of evidence • Argument and reasoning • Fact and belief • Qualitative and quantitative • Socio-cultural influence

12. Sample of CT questions – drag and drop

13. Sample CT questions – multiple choice • The more closed-circuit television cameras in public spaces the better. • Choose the alternative (A–D) that most appropriately describes the relationship of the statement to the proposition of the debate about closed circuit television (CCTV) cameras. • The statement ‘CCTV cameras do not reduce crime; they simply move it to different locations’ •  A is most likely part of the argument for the proposition. •  B is most likely part of the argument against the proposition. •  C could possibly be part the argument for or against the proposition. •  D is not relevant to either the argument for or against the proposition.

14. Sample CT questions – short answer • Below are four possible research questions (A to D) about music and study. • Which one of the research questions do you think is mostspecific and answerable? Justify your answer.

15. Setting different parameters • Cross-curricular • Role of the teacher • Resourcing • Mentors • Links with universities • Linkage between written report and • oral presentation and defence

16. What’s in it for students? • Follow a passion • Develop skills of inquiry and the nature of the dialectic • Learn about each other’s research • Get a taste of expectations of tertiary study