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WAIER, ACER and SAIER Autumn Seminar

12 May 2022 by admin

Review methodologies: Rapid reviews, Evidence Gap Maps, Systematic reviews TBA

WAIER is very excited to announce a new partnership with the South Australian Institute for Education Research (SAIER) and the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) to offer a series of FREE methodologies webinars.

The first seminar will focus on: Review methodologies: Rapid reviews, Evidence Gap Maps, Systematic reviews

Date: 23rd November

Time: 4:30 – 6:00 pm ONLINE WEBINAR (via the MSTeams Platform)

Please register your interest with: juliet.young-thornton@acer.org

A link to the Webinar will be emailed to you on Monday 22 November 2021

Filed Under: Events, Partner Events, Professional Learning, Seminar Series

WAIER Committee Members

30 April 2022 by admin

Meet our amazing WAIER Committee Members

Dr Clare McBeath

WAIER Life Member

PhD (Curtin), MA(Ed) (Southampton UK), BA (Adelaide), Diploma in Teaching (Adelaide CAE), Diploma in Training & Assessment Systems (Curtin), Diploma in Applied Language (Central TAFE, WA), Advanced Cert in Media Production (Kilkenny Tech, SA). 

WAIER Life Member; WAIER Fellow; PCTWA Outstanding Professional service Award.

“As a trained secondary school teacher I taught in Sarawak and Brunei for 15 years before undertaking a Master of Arts in Education in the UK. On return to Australia I worked with Adult Aboriginal Education in SA, Deakin University and the Gordon Technical College in Victoria, and the TAFE National Centre for R&D in Adelaide.”

“I was appointed to Curtin University where I coordinated the Training and Development Program, offering degree and graduate diploma courses in further education. I believe it was the most diverse and interesting program in the School of Education!”

For list of publications see http://www.clare-mcbeath.id.au/

“Since retirement in 2003 I have continued my involvement with WAIER, undertaking programming and publishing for the annual Forum, and editorial and publishing responsibility for Issues in Educational Research.”

    Dr Patricia (Trish) Collins

    Edith Cowan University

    Dr Trish Collins is a lecturer in Early Childhood Studies in the School of Education at Edith Cowan University in Perth, Western Australia. Trish worked in Pre-K to Yr2 early childhood classrooms for 20+ years before becoming an early childhood consultant for CEWA in the Kimberley region and then across the state. She has also worked as a consultant for Early Life Foundation (Walker Learning). Her research focuses on personal values (i.e., motivational goals) in childhood and how these impact children’s well-being and behaviour.

    “I am currently examining early childhood pre-service teacher’s knowledge of their own personal values (i.e., motivational goals) to give them an insight into how they will impact the children they teach and how children’s values may be similar or opposing to their own.”

    “I joined WAIER as I believe that it is important that research being conducted in WA is promoted and disseminated to the community. WAIER also provides the opportunity for me to network and collaborate across institutions.”

    “My research interests include personal values, wellbeing, behaviour, social support and motivational goals.”

      Dr Saul Karnovsky

      Curtin University

      “I am an experienced pre-service teacher educator and early career researcher, specialising in the fields of teacher emotions, pedagogy, professional ethics, and classroom management. My recently completed thesis explored pre-service teacher emotions in learning to teach. In my research I draw upon post-structural theory to examine how emotions emerge within the modern neo-liberal contexts of schooling from the historical, social, and political processes in which they are enacted. I embrace an alternative ontological space, seeking to deeply engage with new ideas and different theoretical perspectives of education.”

      “My current research interests are in supporting schools and pre-service teachers to provide open and understanding spaces for educators to address emotional labour in a professional and ethical manner.”

      “I joined WAIER as I was supported in a substantial way by the organisation when I was a doctoral student and wish to give back to other emerging education researchers in WA.”

      “I am currently working on a Curtin University funded teaching & learning project: “Developing an authentic teaching video resource for pre-service teacher professional development in managing the secondary learning environment.” The projects aim is to provide pre-service teachers with an authentic and engaging rich-media resource that simulates real-world scenarios of classroom management. The project is partnering with the West Australian Youth Theatre Company (https://waytco.com/) to hire young actors to play the part of school students in an authentic scenario-based video resource. Once produced for implementation in course design, the project will research teacher educators and pre-service teachers as to their confidence and understanding of key positive classroom management skills.”

      “My research interests include in-service and pre-service teacher wellbeing, emotional labour, teacher education, organisational self-care.”

        Dr Janene Sproul

        Murdoch University

        Dr Janene Sproul is a lecturer in Science and Inclusive Education (secondary) at Murdoch University in Perth, Western Australia. After more than twenty years teaching in secondary Science labs in both rural and metropolitan, government and independent systems, her focus is to further support pre-service and early career Science teachers in their inclusive pedagogy.

        Research interests lie in determination of two areas in secondary schooling post-Covid; support and retention of early career Science teachers (rural WA) and best-practice classroom adjustments for students with hypersensitivity to visual light.

        Educational research has the potential to reveal evidence based processes to increase engagement of students as well as identification of un-intended marginalisation. For these reasons I joined the committee to further promote these investigations in the context of Western Australia.

        “My published research to date has focused on minimisation of adverse effects from environmental lighting (including computers and screens) in the classroom. This can be seen in secondary classrooms as students diagnosed with migraine and concussion typically have periods of visual light hypersensitivity (VLH); the physical effects ranging from fatigue to pain, the effect on cognition evidenced by decreased germane cognitive load. The Vygotskian lens of Defectology (1993, translated by Andy Bluden) outlines the different rather than delayed development for students with disabilities, whether they be episodic or continuous, evolving or permanent. Choi et al (2014) expanded on Sweller’s Cognitive Load theory (1988) to include the physical learning environment. It is within this sphere, incorporating post-Covid reliance on hybrid and online learning, that I focus my research. The aim being to determine best practice for different academic engagement by adolescents with VLH, thus avoiding educator assumptions of delayed development for these students.”

        “Two or three times a year I present at conferences on Inclusive Teaching and Learning in Science. In 2022 I began the year with Davydov, secondary science teaching and native Australia Plants and will continue with Inclusive practice In Secondary Science Classrooms in June. These connections with secondary and tertiary educators link research into practice enabling action research moving forward. “

        Research interests include Science education, Inclusive education, early career teachers, secondary and adolescent.

          Filed Under: Committee

          WAIER, SAIER and ACER Summer Research

          11 April 2022 by admin

          Held in March 2022, this Summer Research webinar includes presentations by Associate Professor Peter Wright, Professor Barry Down and Dr. Christine Cunningham.

          23/03/2022

          Link for the individual presentations

          https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1bxnm_JRV7_wAOBQBAXUvgV47HRz6j4uM?usp=sharing

          See the below article for all readings relevant to this qualitative methodologies webinar…

          Critical qualitative research/ethnography: Selected reading list.

          Filed Under: Advocacy & Engagement, Seminar Series

          Critical qualitative research/ethnography: Selected reading list.

          9 April 2022 by admin

          Compiled by Barry Down, Murdoch University.

          • Alvesson, M. & Deetz, S. (2021). Doing critical research. London: Sage.
          • Anderson, G. (1989). Critical Ethnography in Education: Origins, Current Status and New Directions. Review of Educational Research, 59(3), pp. 249-270.
          • Angus, L. (1986). Developments in ethnographic research in education: from interpretive to critical ethnography. Journal of Research and Development in Education, 20, pp. 59-67.
          • Angus, L. (1986). Research traditions, ideology and critical ethnography. Discourse, 7(1), pp. 61-77.
          • Anyon, J. with Dumas, M., Linville, D., Nolan, K., Perez, M., Tuck, E, & Weiss, J. (2009). Theory and educational research: Towards critical social explanation. New York: Routledge.
          • Atkinson, P., & Delamont, S. (2006). In the roiling smoke: Qualitative inquiry and contested fields. International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education, 19(6), pp. 747-755.
          • Barley, R., & Russell, L. (2016). Ethnography: More than the written field note. The Oxford Ethnography and Education Conference Plenary Session, 19-21st September 2016, Oxford. (Unpublished)
          • Ball, S. (2006). The necessity and violence of theory. Discourse: Studies in the Cultural Politics of Education, 27(1), pp. 3-10.
          • Burawoy, M., & et. al. (2000). Global ethnography: Forces, connections, and imaginations in a Postmodern World. Berkeley: University of California Press.
          • Burgess, R. (1988). Conversations with a purpose: The ethnographic interview in educational research. Studies in Qualitative Methodology 1(1), pp. 137-155.
          • Cannella, G., Salazar, M., Pasque, P. (2015). (Eds.). Critical qualitative inquiry: Foundations and future. London: Routledge.
          • Carmona, J., & Luschen, K. (2014). Crafting critical stories: Toward pedagogies and methodologies of collaboration, inclusion, and voice. New York: Peter Lang.
          • Clair, R. P. (2003) The changing story of ethnography. In R. P. Clair (Ed.), Expressions of ethnography (pp. 3-26). Albany, US: SUNY Press.
          • Cook-Sather, A. (2013). Translating learners, researchers, and qualitative approaches through investigations of students’ experiences in school. Qualitative Research, 13(3), pp. 352-367.
          • Denzin, N., & Giardina, M. (2016) (Eds.). Qualitative inquiry through a critical lens. London: Routledge.
          • Denzin, N., & Giardina, M. (2016) (Eds.). Qualitative inquiry – past, present and future: A critical reader. London: Routledge.
          • Denzin, N., & Giardina, M. (2017). Qualitative inquiry in neoliberal times. London: Routledge.
          • Denzin, N., Lincoln, Y., & Giardina, M. (2006). Disciplining qualitative research. International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education, 19(6), pp. 769-782.
          • Fielding, M. (2004). Transformative approaches to student voice: Theoretical underpinnings, recalcitrant realities. British Educational Research Journal 30(2), pp. 295–311.
          • Fine, M. (2018). Just research in contentious times: Widening the methodological imagination. New York: Teachers College Press.
          • Foley, D. (2002). Critical ethnography in the postcritical moment. In Y. Zou & H. Trueba (Eds.), Ethnography and schools: Qualitative approaches to the study of education (pp. 139-170). Lanham, MD.: Rowman & Littlefield.
          • Foley, D. (2002). Critical ethnography: the reflexive turn. International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education, 15(4), pp. 469-490.
          • Garman, N. (1994). Qualitative inquiry: meaning and menace for educational researchers. In J. Smyth (Ed.), Qualitative approaches to educational research. Adelaide: Flinders Institute for the Study of Teaching.
          • Goodall, H. L. (2000). Writing new ethnography. New York: Rowman & Littlefield.
          • Goodson, I. F. & Gill, S. (2011). Narrative pedagogy: Life history and learning. New York: Peter Lang.
          • Guajardo, M., & Guajardo, F. (2002). Critical ethnography and community change. In Y.
          • Zou & H. Trueba (Eds.), Ethnography and schools: Qualitative approaches to the study of education (pp. 281-304). Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield.
          • Jeffrey, B., & Troman, G. (2004). Time for ethnography. British Educational Research Journal, 30(4), pp. 535-548.
          • Jordan, S. (2003). Critical ethnography and the sociology of education. In C. Torres & A. Antikainen (Eds.), The international handbook on the sociology of education: An International Assessment of New Research and Theory (pp. 82-100). Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield.
          • Jordan, S., & Yeomans, D. (1995). Critical ethnography: problems in theory and practice. British Journal of Sociology of Education, 16(3), pp. 389-400.
          • Kincheloe, J. (1993). Toward a critical politics of teacher thinking: Mapping the postmodern. Westport: Connecticut: Bergin & Garvey.
          • Kincheloe, J. (2003). Teachers as researchers: Qualitative inquiry as a path to empowerment. New York: Routledge.
          • Kress, T. (2011). Critical praxis research: breathing new life into research methods for teachers. Dordrecht: Springer.
          • Lather, P. (1986). Research as praxis. Harvard Education Review, 56(3), pp. 257-277.
          • Lather, P. (1993). Fertile obsession: validity after poststructuralism. Sociological Quarterley, 34(4), pp. 673-693.
          • Lave, J. (2011). Apprenticeship in critical ethnographic practice. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press.
          • Lawrence-Lightfoot, S. (2005). Reflections on portraiture. A dialogue between art and science. Qualitative Inquiry, 11(1), pp. 3-15.
          • Lawrence-Lightfoot, S., & Hoffmann Davis, J (1997). The art and science of portraiture. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
          • Levinson, B., & Cade, S. (2002). Introduction: ethnography and education policy across the Americas. In B. Levinson, S. Cade, A. Padawer & A. Elvir (Eds.), Ethnography and education policy across the Americas (pp. ix-xx). Westport, CT: Praeger.
          • Levinson, B., & Sutton, M. (2001). Introduction: policy as/in practice; a sociocultural approach to the study of educational policy. In M. Sutton & B. Levinson (Eds.), Policy as practice: Toward a comparative sociocultural analysis of educational policy (pp. 1-22). Westport, CT: Ablex.
          • Lund, D., & Carr, P. (2008). Introduction: scanning democracy. In D. Lund & P. Carr (Eds.), Doing democracy: Striving for political literacy and social justice (pp. 1-29). New York: Peter Lang Publishing.
          • Madison, D. S. (2005). Critical ethnography: Methods, ethics, and performance.
          • Marcus, G. (1998). Ethnography through thick and thin. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
          • Mills, C.W. (1983 [1959]). The sociological imagination. New York: Penguin Books.
          • Shacklock, G., & Smyth, J. (1998). Being reflexive in critical educational and social research. London: Falmer Press.
          • Smith, B. J. (2000). Marginalized youth, delinquency, and education: The need for critical-interpretive research. The Urban Review, 32(3), pp. 293-312
          • Smith, L. (1999). Decolonizing methodologies: Research and indigenous peoples. London: Zed Books.
          • Smyth, J., Angus, L., Down, B., & McInerney, P. (2006). Critical ethnography for school and community renewal around social class differences affecting learning. Journal of learning Communities: International Journal of Learning in Social Contexts, 3, pp. 121-152.
          • Smyth, J., Down, B., McInerney, R., & Hattam, R. (2014). Doing critical educational research: A conversation with the research of John Smyth. New York: Peter Lang.
          • Smyth, J., & Hattam, R. (2001). ‘Voiced’ research as a sociology for understanding ‘dropping out’ of school. British Journal of Sociology of Education, 22(3), pp. 401-415.
          • Smyth, J., & McInerney, P. (2012). From silent witnesses to active agents. New York: Peter Lang.
          • Smyth, J., & McInerney, P. (2013). Whose side are you on? Advocacy ethnography: Some methodological aspects of narrative portraits of disadvantaged young people. International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education, 26(1), pp. 1-20.
          • Steinberg, S., & Cannella, G., (2012). Critical qualitative research: Reader. New York: Peter Lang.
          • Sultana, R. (1992). Ethnography and the politics of absence. International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education, 5(1), pp. 19-27.
          • Swaminathan, R., & Mulvihill, T. (2017). Critical approaches to questions in qualitative research. London: Routledge.
          • Uhrmacher, P., Moroye, C., & Flinders, D. (2017). Using educational criticism and connoisseurship for qualitative research. London: Routledge.
          • Weis, L. & Fine, M. (2001). Extraordinary conversations in public schools. Qualitative Studies in Education 14(4), pp. 497- 523.
          • Walcott, H. (1975). Criteria for an ethnographic approach to research in schools. Human organization, 34(2), 111-127.
          • Walford, G. (2002). When policy moves fast, how long can ethnography take? In B. Levinson, S. Cade, A. Padawer & A. Elvir (Eds.), Ethnography and Education Policy Across the Americas (pp. 23-38). Westport, CT: Praeger.
          • Willis, P. (1980). Notes on method. In S. Hall, D. Hobson, A. Lowe & P. Willis (Eds.), Culture, media and language (pp. 88-95). London: Hutchinson.
          • Willis, P. (2000). The ethnographic imagination. Cambridge: Polity Press.
          • Willis, P. (2004). Twenty-five years on: old books, new times. In N. Dolby, G. Dimitriadis & with P. Willis (Eds.), Learning to labor in new times (pp. 167-196). New York & London: RoutledgeFalmer.
          • Willis, P., & Trondman, M. (2000). Manifesto for ethnography. Ethnography, 1(1), pp. 5-16.

          Filed Under: Qualitative Research, Seminar Series Tagged With: Advocacy, Engagement, Reading List, Research

          Looking at the child: The invisible scars of domestic and family violence

          27 April 2021 by admin


          In this feature article, Jodi Dorney (EdD Candidate, CQ University) explores the impact of domestic and family violence and abuse on young children. If you or someone you know is experiencing abuse or violence contact the National Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence Counselling service on 1800 737 732.  Alternatively, you can call lifeline on 131114.


          Some scholars argue that the family home is the most dangerous place for women and children [1]. Whilst it can at times be easy to identify a child who is a victim of physical abuse, it is more difficult to identify the child who does not present with the external signs and symptoms, but rather suffers due to witnessing their parent – usually the mother – being abused in the ‘safety’ of the family home.

          But how is a child a victim if they are not touched, pushed, or hit?  

          The rate of women experiencing abuse and violence in the family environment is estimated to be one in three globally[2] and homicides perpetrated by a current or former male intimate partner account for approximately 38% of all global homicides against women[3], a figure that continues to rise[4, 5].  We see or read these stories way too often, with an average of one woman dying every week at the hands of an intimate partner in Australia.

          It is estimated that one in four children under five years of age live in a family environment where the mother is a victim of intimate partner violence[5], and whilst many of these children do not suffer direct physical abuse  at the hands of the offender, they are witness to often horrific and violent physical attacks on their mother. They may also be witness to their mother being emotionally abused and/or psychologically abused. Emotional abuse is aimed at affecting the person’s feelings, while psychological abuse often involves frightening, isolating and/or controlling someone, consequently impacting their mental health.


          Girl sitting alone.

          Research identified indirect experiences of domestic and family violence can result in negative psychological, physical, and behavioural impacts [6, 7, 8] on the child, and negative effects on their cognitive development [5] , and social and emotional development and functioning [5, 8, 10, 11].

          Also, much evidence suggests that because a child usually experiences recurrent exposure to domestic and family violence, often they develop cognitive and behavioural schemas over time related to their gender, such as devaluing their own worth, lack of confidence in adults as protectors, and they may believe that abuse and violence within in the family context is a normal experience for girls [5] and abusive behaviours are normal for boys, which explains the intergenerational transmission effect over generations.

          Children learn about emotions primarily from parents and others within the family; however, children living in an abusive and violent family context may be deprived of positive emotional engagement with their parents[11]. Research suggests mothers who are victims of domestic and family violence can suffer from symptoms of anxiety and depression, and may be inattentive, unresponsive, and demonstrate a lack of interest toward their child resulting in insecure attachment [11, 12], impacting the child’s opportunity to learn skills to manage, identify, and express personal emotions [9, 13].

          The sometimes erratic, aggressive, and explosive externalising behaviour of a child (usually a boy, because girls usually adopt an internalised victim-mentality) who has been exposed to abuse and violence in the family environment can hinder opportunities for the child to engage in positive social interactions with friends and adults [14]. Furthermore, unstable, unpredictable, and fractured connections between the child and parents within a violent environment can promote a lack of trust, safety, and security within the child and a failure to acquire and learn fundamental social skills [15].

          Early childhood is a crucial time for a child’s language development[15] too, as language skills allow a child to communicate and connect with others, and these interactions promote the development of cognitive skills [15].

          Family environments lacking in stimulation also have the potential of inhibiting the brain to develop to its full potential [15] . Suffering stress within an abusive and violent family environment has been identified as a potential precursor to diminished cognitive development as it can impair the young child’s brain [15]. Children living with domestic and family violence often experience fear and subsequently suffer chronic stress [15], and it has been identified that children who experience stress and constant anxiety may have cognitive difficulties such as thinking clearly enough to problem solve and reason, and may have difficulty sustaining attention, resulting in the inability to acquire new skills or new information [16], which can result in educational deficits.

          As many people may not be aware that witnessing domestic and family violence as a young child can have such detrimental effects on a child’s development and wellbeing, and with 2020 being a year where rates of domestic and family violence  have reportedly increased [16], it is crucial that as educators we engage in the sometimes uncomfortable and confronting conversations about the visible and invisible effects of domestic and family violence with others, including peers and parents.  

          The focus of my current research is on the impact of intrafamilial violence on children in early childhood, and through exploring early childhood educators’ knowledge regarding the impact of exposure to intrafamilial violence on a developing child, I aim to develop a professional teaching resource prototype that supports early childhood educators to effectively identify, respond to, and support children impacted by intrafamilial violence.

          It is essential that we advocate for and be aware of all children impacted by domestic and family violence, directly and/or indirectly and keep their safety and wellbeing at the forefront of our endeavours.


          Jodi Dorney is an early childhood educator from Victoria, currently completing her Doctor of Education at CQUniversity. Her interest and advocacy for children impacted by intrafamilial violence results from many years working in various early childhood education settings.


          [1] United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (2018). Gender-related killing of women and girls. https://www.unodc.org/documents/data-and-analysis/GSH2018/GSH18_Gender-related_killing_of_women_and_girls.pdf

          [2] World Health Organisation (WHO). (2019). Respect women: Preventing violence against women. Geneva. Retrieved from https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/312261/WHO-RHR-18.19-eng.pdf?ua=1

          [3] Lutwak, N. (2018). The psychology of health and illness: The mental health and physiological effects of intimate partner violence on women. The Journal of Psychology, 152(6), 373-387. doi:10.1080/00223980.2018.1447435

          [4]  Guggisberg, M. (2018). Chapter 2: Conceptualising intimate partner sexual violence: danger and harm to victim survivors and the role of persistent myths. In Guggisberg, M., & Henricksen, J. (Eds.)., Violence against women in the 21st century: Challenges and future direction (pp. 29-56). Nova Science Publishers, Incorporated.

          [5] United Nations Children’s Fund. (UNICEF). (2017). A familiar face: violence in the lives of children and adolescents. Unicef: New York, NY.  Retrieved from https://www.unicef.org/publications/files/Violence_in_the_lives_of_children_and_adolescents.pdf

          [6] Carpenter, G., & Stacks, A. M. (2009). Developmental effects of exposure to intimate partner violence in early childhood: A review of the literature. Children and Youth Services Review, 31(8), 831-839. Retrieved from https://doi-org.ezproxy.cqu.edu.au/10.1016/j.childyouth.2009.03.005

          [7] Howell, K. (2011). Resilience and psychopathology in children exposed to family violence. Aggression and Violent Behavior, 16(6), 562-569. Retrieved from https://doi-org.ezproxy.cqu.edu.au/10.1016/j.avb.2011.09.001

          [8] Briggs-Gowan, M. J., Carter, A. S., & Ford, J. D. (2012). Parsing the effects violence exposure in early childhood: Modeling developmental pathways. Journal of Pediatric Psychology, 37(1), 11-22. doi:10.1093/jpepsy/jsro63

          [9] Fusco, R. A. (2017). Socioemotional problems in children exposed to intimate partner violence: Mediating effects of attachment and family supports. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 32(16), 2515–2532. Retrieved from https://doi-org.ezproxy.cqu.edu.au/10.1177%2F0886260515593545

          [10] Osofsky, J. (1995). The Effects of Exposure to Violence on Young Children. The American Psychologist, 50(9), 782-788.

          [11] Gelfand, D. M., & Teti, D. M. (1990). The effects of maternal depression on children. Clinical Psychology Review, 10(3), 329-353. https://doi-org.ezproxy.cqu.edu.au/10.1016/0272-7358(90)90065-I

          [12] Zahn-Waxler, C., Iannotti, R., Cummings, E., & Denham, S. (1990). Antecedents of problem behaviors in children of depressed mothers. Development and Psychopathology, 2, 271-291.  https://doi.org/10.1017/S0954579400000778

          [13] Cummings, E., Cicchetti, D., & Greenberg, M. (1990). Attachment in the preschool years: Theory, research, and intervention. 

          [14] The National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN). (2019). Complex trauma: effects. Retrieved from https://www.nctsn.org/what-is-child-trauma/trauma-types/complex-trauma/effects

          [15] Zauche, L., Thul, T., Mahoney, A., & Stapel-Wax, J. (2016). Influence of language nutrition on children’s language and cognitive development: An integrated review. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 36, 318-333.

          [16] Morgan, A. & Boxall, H. (2020). Social isolation, time spent at home, financial stress and domestic violence during the COVID-19 pandemic. Trends and Issues in Crime and Criminal Justice, 609, 1-18.


          Would you like to write a feature article for WAIER? Contact us!

          Filed Under: Children's Rights, Early Childhood, Mental Health, New Researchers, Qualitative Research, Research Review, Social Justice

          Educating tomorrow’s women*: Ovulatory-menstrual health literacy as a lifelong skill

          12 April 2021 by admin


          In this feature article, Felicity Roux (PhD Candidate, Curtin University) explores the power of the ovulatory-menstrual cycle as a personal health monitor and ovulatory-menstrual health literacy. Felicity is a member of the WAIER Committee for 2021.

          * The terms girls and women are used in relation to a person’s sex (i.e. their biological characteristics or reproductive organs). It is recognised that this may differ from gender identity. For example, someone who menstruates may or may not identify as “female”.


          The span of years from menarche to menopause can extend 40 years or more. Throughout this time, the ovulatory-menstrual cycle can be used as a personal health monitor. According to the American College of Obstetricians & Gynecologists, the cycle is a “powerful tool” to assess overall health, and menstruation can be considered a vital sign [1]. This means that the cycle is of equal significance to a beating heart and breathing lungs. So it stands to reason that the ability of a woman to understand her own cycles as her personal health monitor would be a useful lifelong skill. The way in which these basic skills can be learnt has been available to the general public since the 1980s [2]. However, a recent systematic literature review describes how, some forty years later, these health literacy skills are insufficiently taught [3].

          It is a mistake to believe that all things menstrual are covered in the puberty lessons for Years 5 to 7. The immaturity of the average girl’s hypothalamic-pituitary-ovarian axis means that post-menarche cycles are mostly anovulatory [4]. It can take up to three years for ovulatory processes to mature [5]. Years 8 to 10 are when girls become most likely capable of appropriating the complexity of the cycle [6]. Coincidentally, common menstrual problems are increasingly reported, such as painful periods [7], premenstrual syndrome [8] and abnormal bleeding patterns [9]. Some problems are associated with absenteeism [7, 8], reduced classroom performance [7, 8], body dissatisfaction [10], eating disorders [11], non-suicidal self-injury [12], and poor quality of life [13].

          The review [3] suggested that a crowded Health & Physical Education curriculum results in insufficient time to teach girls ovulatory-menstrual health literacy skills. As a taboo topic shrouded in shame and stigma [14], there may also be a reluctance to teach it.     

          Where there have been initiatives to address menstrual health, programs tended to focus on a single problem (such as painful periods or irregular cycles) rather than addressing all of the most commonly experienced problems. Furthermore, by predicating programs on a menstrual problem, there is likely a missed opportunity to frame the cycle positively as an indicator of good health first and foremost. Whilst there has been some progress towards teaching girls ovulatory-menstrual health literacy, the review3 found no programs which covered all the health literacy dimensions (functional, interactive and critical), upon which the Western Australian curriculum is based [15].

          The review’s recommendations [3] informed the development of the My Vital Cycles program which will be trialled in Term 2 and 3 of 2021.

          My Vital Cycles: menstrual health literacy

          [1] American College of Obstetricians & Gynecologists Committee. (2015). Opinion No. 651: Menstruation in Girls and Adolescents: Using the Menstrual Cycle as a Vital Sign. Obstetrics & Gynecology, 126(6), e143-e146 doi:10.1097/AOG.0000000000001215

          [2] Billings, E., & Westmore, A. (1980). The Billings Method: Controlling fertility without drugs or devices. Richmond, Victoria Australia: Anne O’Donovan Pty Ltd.

          [3] Roux, F., Burns, S., Hendriks, J., & Chih, H.J. (2021). Progressing Towards Adolescent Ovulatory menstrual Health Literacy: A Systematic Literature Review of School-based Interventions. Women’s Reproductive Health, 8(2). doi:10.1080/23293691.2021.1901517

          [4] Carlson, L., & Shaw, N. (2019). Development of Ovulatory Menstrual Cycles in Adolescent Girls. Journal of Pediatric and Adolescent Gynecology, 32(3), 249-253. doi:10.1016/j.jpag.2019.02.119

          [5] Jamieson, M. (2015). Disorders of Menstruation in Adolescent Girls. Pediatric Clinics of North America, 62(4), 943-961. doi:10.1016/j.pcl.2015.04.007

          [6] Klaus, H., & Martin, J. L. (1989). Recognition of Ovulatory/Anovulatory Cycle Pattern in Adolescents by Mucus Self-Detection. Journal of Adolescent Health Care, 10, 93-96

          [7] Armour, M., Parry, K., Manohar, N., Holmes, K., Ferfolja, T., Curry, C., . . . Smith, C. A. (2019). The Prevalence and Academic Impact of Dysmenorrhea in 21,573 Young Women: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Journal of Women’s Health, 28(8), 1161-1171. doi:10.1089/jwh.2018.7615

          [8] Parker, M., Sneddon, A., & Arbon, P. (2010). The menstrual disorder of teenagers (MDOT) study: determining typical menstrual patterns and menstrual disturbance in a large population‐based study of Australian teenagers. BJOG, 117(2), 185-192. doi:10.1111/j.1471-0528.2009.02407.x

          [9] Maslyanskaya, S., et al. (2017). Polycystic Ovary Syndrome: An Under-recognized Cause of Abnormal Uterine Bleeding in Adolescents Admitted to a Children’s Hospital. Journal of Pediatric and Adolescent Gynecology, 30(3), 349-355

          [10] Ambresin, A.-E., Belanger, R. E., Chamay, C., Berchtold, A., & Narring, F. (2012). Body Dissatisfaction on Top of Depressive Mood among Adolescents with Severe Dysmenorrhea. Journal of Pediatric and Adolescent Gynecology, 25(1), 19-22. doi:10.1016/j.jpag.2011.06.014

          [11] Abraham, S., Boyd, C., Lal, M., Luscombe, G., & Taylor, A. (2009). Time since menarche, weight gain and body image awareness among adolescent girls: onset of eating disorders. Journal of Psychosomatic Obstetrics & Gynecology, 30(2), 89-94. doi:10.1080/01674820902950553

          [12] Liu, X., Liu, Z. Z., Fan, F., & Jia, C. X. (2018). Menarche and menstrual problems are associated with non-suicidal self-injury in adolescent girls. Archives of Women’s Mental Health, 21(6), 649-656. doi:10.1007/s00737-018-0861-y

          [13] Knox, B., Nur Azurah, A., & Grover, S. (2015). Quality of life and menstruation in adolescents. Current Opinion in Obstetrics and Gynecology, 27(5), 309-314. doi:10.1097/GCO.0000000000000199

          [14] Chrisler, J. C. (2013). Teaching Taboo Topics. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 37(1), 128-132. doi:10.1177/0361684312471326

          [15] SCSA – School Curriculum and Standards Authority, Government of Western Australia. (2017). Health and Physical Education Curriculum 2017/9396 [2017/9397] https://k10outline.scsa.wa.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0007/364552/Health-and-Physical-Education-Curriculum-Pre-primary-to-Year-10.PDF Accessed 2020 06 16

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