ATOM

ISSUE 65 SCREEN EDUCATION

72

The rules
of visual
engagement

Images as Tools for Learning

trw vertigo, CC licensed Flickr photo by DArcy Norman: <http://flic.kr/p/9R83WD>

IMAGE & ENGAGEMENT

With young people being

exposed to countless images
each day, visual texts are
more vital than ever within
the education system.
Jon Callow proposes
a pedagogical approach
whereby students immediate
attraction to images is used
to enhance engagement
within classrooms.

our eyes gaze downwards, your stomach

drops and a buzz of vertigo tingles. A photo
can suddenly transport you to places you
might never reach yourself, as in the multiple worlds of Inception (Christopher Nolan,
2010). From photographers, designers, artists and film
directors, images pour forth into our everyday experience
with an immediacy unmatched by any other communication mode. Before you can even think, an event, a feeling
or an idea is planted on your retina, shocking, tantalising
or worming its way into your mind. The power of visual
images to engage us is a given in contemporary culture.
How might this powerful resource be incorporated into
highly motivating classroom experiences, particularly for
students who have traditionally disengaged from school?
This article explores the nature of visual images, arguing that a broader conceptual theory provides multiple
lenses for understanding visual texts, from advertising to
picture books. The affective impact of visual images, both
still and moving, is then considered, examining research
on student engagement and visual resources that was
undertaken as part of a research project for teachers
working with students in poverty.

The power of the image

ATOM

ISSUE 65 SCREEN EDUCATION

Research in a number of fields has recognised that

pictures and photographs have immediate emotional
power.1 From the family portrait to the global advertising campaign, the use of images is understood as a
persuasive tool, capable of influencing peoples feelings,
ideas and beliefs.2 Visuals often work with written text in
a multimodal fashion, to entertain, inform or persuade

73

in various social contexts. Advertisements explicitly utilise

images, drawing on empirical research which shows that
pictures are more easily recognised and recalled than words.3
Educationally, research in media studies acknowledges both
the rise of visual culture in general, as well as the impact that
visual texts, including multimodal and electronic texts, have on
students.4 There is significant evidence that visual and multimodal texts engage children and teenagers across a number of
areas, from gaming and social media to video and digital text
creation.5 Visual and multimodal texts are acknowledged as
part of the textual and literary landscape in the national curriculum for English,6 providing an important mandate for the
study of such texts. Historically, Australian English and literacy
practice draws more on language-focused than image-focused
traditions, which in turn shapes how texts are read, taught and
created in classroom contexts.7 Even the term visual texts
integrates a more language-based view into our concept of
visual images. The benefits of understanding how language
works, particularly from an educational point of view, is significant for developing students literacy skills. However, changing
views of how we make meaning in the twenty-first century have
promoted what WJT Mitchell calls the pictorial turn, through
which images are becoming more dominant in our culture.8
From this recognition has developed the interdisciplinary body
of work that deals with images under the broad umbrella of
visual culture. This field acknowledges work across disciplines such as media studies, film, architecture and visual arts.
If we turn to some work that provides a comprehensive frame
for understanding visual culture, Malcolm Barnards analysis of
the various theoretical concepts that visual culture embraces
is helpful for articulating how we might work with images.9
Rather than just having one interpretive lens for a visual image,
he suggests a continuum of understanding. At one end we can
understand images as reflecting various cultural structures and
practices, like the conventions for labelling a scientific diagram,
or the careful cropping and framing of an image in a photojournalism article. By learning the conventions and styles of how
images are constructed and presented, we can better interpret
and make sense of them. Towards the other end of the continuum, there are more personal interpretive approaches, which
reinforce Barnards claim that understanding and meaning
are the business of individuals.10 Viewing involves seeking the
intentions, desires and purposes of the image-maker, as well
as our own personal responses and interpretations. The dizzying stairwell photo on the previous pages can thus be understood using a variety of lenses from across the continuum,

Benetton Victims advertisement Erik Ravelo/Fabrica

<http://press.benettongroup.com/ben_en/image_gallery/
campaigns/?branch_id=2315>

where structures, conventions and techniques are accompanied

by stories, emotional reactions and personal histories.
While a continuum provides a helpful view of how various disciplines have engaged with the visual image, it can also lead to
one approach or lens being selected at the expense of others.
In my view it is more helpful to consider three simultaneous
dimensions of the image: affective, compositional and critical.11 Rather than forming a continuum, these three dimensions overlap, each one informing or influencing the other (see
Figure 1). While the affective embraces the sensual immediacy,
the personal interpretation and response to an image or multimodal text, the compositional considers the cultural, structural
and semiotic features (design, grammar, symbols, colour, line
and so on). Social semioticians Kress and van Leeuwen note
that images are also entirely in the realm of ideology,12 so
a critical dimension is also necessary for us to consider the
power relations that are present in any type of text. The critical
may simply acknowledge the choices or perspectives presented
in a text, or move to a more thorough critique and analysis
around discourses such as power, gender or social issues.
An animated version of the model at left (viewable at http://
visualmodel.yolasite.com) reinforces the way these dimensions
overlap, exchanging places and emphasis.

Images in context

ATOM

ISSUE 65 SCREEN EDUCATION

74

Figure 1: Affective Compositional Critical diagram originally used in

Jon Callow, Literacy and the Visual: Broadening Our Vision, English
Teaching: Practice and Critique, vol. 4, no. 1, 2005

Understanding the context of an image is important in terms of

meaning and impact, particularly in educational settings. Most
images will be part of a multimodal text, where word and image
work together. In other texts, video and interactive media further
blend the various modes. While an image may be emotionally
arresting on first encounter, there is always a context a narrative if you will, simple or complex working behind it, which can
give further insight for a viewer. Whether it is a very personal
holiday photograph or a historic royal portrait, engaging students through affective, compositional or critical dimensions

also requires some background information, some insider

knowledge. Where is the staircase in the feature photo? How
was the shot taken? Was the photo part of a series, or a one-off
experience? Providing contextual aspects such as history, place
and cultural purpose of an image can give students a more significant understanding of the possible meanings and analytical
approaches for all types of images and texts.
The Benetton campaign poster (see facing page), created in
response to the 2008 earthquake in Chinas Sichuan province, was published in European newspapers in 2008 to coincide with the opening of the Beijing Olympics. Visually, the symmetrical images of two people, facing each other in a prayerful pose, immediately attracts our attention, as does the large
single word. If we understand the figures as a Tibetan monk and
a Chinese soldier, politically at odds, then an interesting opposition is apparent. Their bowing, prayerful pose disrupts the
enmity, while the word VICTIMS, represented by whirling smoke
or smudged dust, adds another intriguing layer to our reading of
the image. Who are the victims? Are they both victims of a larger
system? We could also ask who the aggressor is. Even without
considering the brand or related natural disaster, the visual and
written elements have a strong immediacy for the viewer.

multimodal work in other subject areas, the purposeful use of

images can play a key role in motivating students.

Challenging classrooms
Dan is an early-career teacher working in a large, inner-urban
primary school, in which 98 per cent of students come from
language backgrounds other than English, and which serves
many underprivileged families. In this community there are
high levels of unemployment, subsidised housing and, very
often, limited resources at home. Historically, many students
living in poverty develop a resistance to schooling, where they
dont experience education as a positive part of their lives.15
During one lesson in Dans class, the pages of the controversial picture book Woolvs in the Sitee by Margaret Wild and Anne
Spudvilas16 were projected onto a large screen for the students
to read. In the book, Ben, alone with no family in a disturbing
post-apocalyptic world, is hiding from the woolvs, not daring
to go outside. His neighbour, Missus Radinski, doesnt believe
in the woolvs and encourages Ben to go out until one day she
disappears. The written text of the book is purposely misspelt, using invented phonetic spelling, and the charcoal and
coloured-ink visual images are dramatic and disturbing. The
children in this middle-years class were listening to the written text (which read aloud makes sense), but the focus of the
lesson was drawing out the possible meanings of the visual.
While looking at the scene of a dark and foreboding back alley,
Dan asked what visual features create a dangerous feel. Shawn

ATOM

Engaging students using visual images can be a potent way to

initially motivate and draw them into a learning experience.
Whether it is using advertising such as the Benetton piece as
part of a media studies unit, or accessing any type of visual and

Boy and Flame - Image from Margaret Wild & Anne Spudvilas, Woolvs in the
Sitee, Penguin, Camberwell, 2006. Courtesy of Penguin Group (Australia).

ISSUE 65 SCREEN EDUCATION

While images can have a swift affective impact on a viewer,

Joffe contends that visuals are readily absorbed in an unmediated manner because viewers are not generally provoked to
reflect on or deconstruct them in the way that occurs in relation
to verbal material.13 It could be argued that our role as educators is to allow students to encounter a variety of images and
texts, as well as to promote reflection and analysis, so that they
have robust as well as pleasurable learning experiences. If
we consider some of the visual compositional elements of the
Benetton poster, we can help our students understand why this
image may be effective. The symmetry of praying men against a
white background gives a calm stable feel, where the use of the
mid shot creates a closer social relationship than would a long
shot. The large black lettering at the top disrupts the stability,
both in the blotching effect and the suggestion of victimisation.
That it is placed at the top of the page (the ideal or conceptually privileged space) further reinforces victims as a dominant
theme. The inclusion of the Benetton logo, if understood as a
clothing company, can unsettle a definite interpretation how
do praying adversaries promote fashion? Contextual information helps to provide some meaning for the poster, as part of
both a fundraising campaign for earthquake victims, as well
as a political statement, something for which Benetton is
well known.14 While context assists our reading, there is still
interpretive space opened up by the advertisement. Is Benetton
promoting both peace and earthquake relief, while at the same
time positioning itself as a political diplomat? How do these
multiple ideologies correspond with an international fashion
brand and advertising campaign? Whatever the possibilities,
the advertisement reinforces the powerful role that images play
in our lives.

75

pointed to the barbed wire and noted that being in the foreground, it is drawn to make it look big. Thats brilliant, said
Dan, immediately praising the student and building on the idea
of visual perspective.
Dans questions were clearly focused on the pictures, encouraging his Year 6 students to find multiple meanings. He urged
them to put their Year 6 hats on, reminding them that to a
younger child a picture might only seem like a bike or door, but
to older students like them, it can hold much more. Stopping at
a page that shows the main character and a fire, Dan asked why
there might be fire in the picture. He then went deeper, asking
them What does fire symbolise? As the lesson unfolded, it
was clear that Dan was teaching quite specific visual features
of the text, using terms like symbolism, perspective, colour,
tone and angles. When studying stories like these, students in
Dans class will also create their own texts, blending words and
images in order to extend their English and literacy skills.
Dans classroom features a combination of intellectual rigour,
hands-on activities and a very positive learning environment.
His students are highly engaged in their learning, which is clear
in their facial expressions, speech and body language. The
class use a variety of visual resources and technology, where
students problem-solve, discuss, take digital photographs and
share their ideas. The hum of activity that often characterises
a positive learning environment is clearly evident, with all the
students actively and happily involved. So what makes the difference? Is engagement just a fleeting moment, or the skill of a
very talented teacher?
The Fair Go team came together over ten years ago, concerned
with the issue of student engagement for children and schools
in areas of high poverty. Based at the University of Western
Sydney, the team of academics have co-researched with classroom teachers to develop a theoretical framework that offers
both a description of student engagement and a pedagogical
guide for teachers who want to enhance learning and engagement in their classrooms. Their initial publication, School is
for Me,17 details a number of school case studies from Southwestern Sydney. Teachers for a Fair Go is their most recent
research project, in which twenty-eight exemplary teachers
from across NSW, working with K12 students, have been coresearching with their academic partners to detail the qualities
and pedagogical practice that make a difference in engaging
students living in poverty. The following section defines engagement as part of a broader theoretical framework and pedagogy,
and then considers the role of visual texts as contributing to
student engagement in a variety of classroom contexts.

The risky business of student engagement

ATOM

ISSUE 65 SCREEN EDUCATION

76

An engaging classroom is a motivating space, where everyone has a

share in that space. Kids are comfortable in it to take risks and also
the teacher is comfortable with taking a risk in teaching.
Sue, high school teacher in South-western Sydney
Sue believes that student engagement is about being in task,
not just on task. She explains that this means students are

Figure 2: Fair Go Project Classroom changes model from Fair Go team,

School Is for Me: Pathways to Student Engagement, NSW Dept of Education
and Training, Sydney, 2006

While caring and support

are definitely necessary,
they are not sufficient
to address the broader
challenges of schooling
for students in poverty.
Its here that the discourse
that surrounds students
schooling experience needs
to be positive, resilient
and supported by effective
pedagogy.

actively engaged in what they are doing, not just churning out
work for the teacher. She also believes engagement means
kids wanting to come to school, seeing school as a place for
them. This is the practical application of the Fair Go Projects
theoretical frame. The project defines student engagement at
two levels, termed small e and big E engagement. Small e
engagement happens in the everyday learning experiences.
Substantive engagement at this level is the combination of high
cognitive challenge, high affective feelings and high operative
involvement18 in other words, thinking hard, feeling good and
working well. The type of learning experience described in
Dans classroom lesson above illustrates this.
At the big E engagement level, the framework draws on sociological and pedagogical research. Educational sociologist Basil
Bernstein argues that classrooms often deliver strong messages to students through assessment, pedagogy and curriculum.19 The Fair Go Project posits that these messages strongly
shape students attitudes and engagement with schooling, in
both positive and negative ways. Unfortunately, many students
in low socioeconomic status schools have received negative
messages about learning and their own abilities and situations,
leading to the rejection of schooling and education as a positive
or enabling experience.20

Students appreciate you as a staff member because you are not

leaving them [or] going anywhere. These kids do not have a lot of
stability in their lives.

To counter the phenomenon of disengaging messages, the

Fair Go Project argues that a model of pedagogy is required
that involves the interplay of classroom learning experiences
(small e) with the broader classroom and educational learning
processes that promote engaging messages about the value
of education for all students (big E) (as in Figure 2, facing
page).23 Thus, a classroom like Dans will not only enact the
broader classroom processes described in the model, emphasising positive, engaging messages to students, but will also
shape learning experiences around the three aspects of high
cognitive, high affective and high operative. The Fair Go Project
argues strongly that a teacher must be explicitly aware of
working at both levels (small e and big E) to enhance student
engagement. The everyday learning experiences are critical,
but they are embedded in a larger educational context. It is in
the everyday learning that the use and impact of visual and
multimodal texts can play a role in small e engagement, thus
contributing to the wider work of big E engagement.
Should images just be considered a decorative enticement to
attract students before the real learning begins? Or are they
significant as both affective incentives and objects of study in
their own right? Earlier work in the Fair Go Project included
action research with a specific focus on visual literacy. This
work suggested that visual images provided many pathways
into learning, engaging students in ways that written text could
not.24 Media studies research from academics such as David
Buckingham and Julian Sefton-Green similarly details students strongly engaging with visual and multimedia texts.25
The challenge in teaching is to build on this initial response
or reaction to visual images to productively engage students
in learning.

ATOM

Rebecca, English teacher from western
New South Wales

But while caring and support are definitely necessary, they are
not sufficient to address the broader challenges of schooling
for students in poverty. Its here that the discourse that surrounds students schooling experience needs to be positive,
resilient and supported by effective pedagogy.

ISSUE 65 SCREEN EDUCATION

The social and personal implications of this rejection are powerful, detailed in both academic research and media reports.21
Schools in the Fair Go Project are those serving the poorest 18
per cent of communities in NSW. Teachers work with students whose oppositional behaviour often creates challenging
classroom contexts. These types of students and schools are
represented in several popular films, from the classic To Sir with
Love (James Clavell, 1967), to the more recent Good Will Hunting
(Gus Van Sant, 1997), Freedom Writers (Richard LaGravanese,
2007) and The Class (Laurent Cantet, 2008). Students in films
like these are often disconnected from knowledge and learning, having lost a sense of their own ability and a voice in the
school culture. The classroom is a place of power struggles
and control, although in some schools student disconnection
is evidenced by passive but uninterested compliance, where
teachers need to convince students that learning is active,
enjoyable and collaborative. While film representations can be
stereotypical, a lot of research from Willis seminal work in
the 1970s to more recent work by Connell in 1993 and Hayes
in 2006 demonstrates consistent evidence of disengagement
and lower academic outcomes for students living in poverty.22
Other challenges for teachers in the Fair Go research included
students with academic and language learning needs, those
from impoverished inner-urban communities and suburban
housing estates, and students living in remote contexts. At a
pastoral level, one of the key aspects of teachers working with
students is the importance of building emotionally safe learning
environments.

Should images just be

considered a decorative
enticement to attract
students before the real
learning begins? Or are they
significant as both affective
incentives and objects of
study in their own right?

77

Visual engagement

Image matters in the classroom

Initial findings from the Teachers for a Fair Go project showed

that twenty-six of the twenty-eight teachers explicitly used
visual texts and resources when teaching, whether in the primary school with English and literacy activities, or within their
subject area in secondary school settings. Data was collected
from classroom observations, teacher interviews, student
interviews and cross-case analysis workshops, where teachers
were co-researchers with the academic partners.26

Bronwen helps her Year 8 English class come to grips with

Shakespeare by showing two YouTube clips featuring Shylock,
the main protagonist from Shakespeares The Merchant of
Venice. Introducing the concept of rhetorical questions, they
view two versions of Shylocks monologue, one by Orson Welles,
the other by Al Pacino. Learning through these visual texts, they
explore the intent of the character, using this as the basis for
their own speeches that they will present to peers. Being able
to see two very different actors present the character helps
these students to better understand Shakespeare.

Teachers use of visuals in their classrooms can be grouped

under two broad categories: learning through visuals, and
learning about visuals.

LEARNING THROUGH VISUALS

LEARNING ABOUT VISUALS

Photos to share classroom learning experiences, such as a visual

learning journey for the class

Analysing visual texts for

key information using visual
features such as symbols and
use of colour

Visual images to instruct and

explain tasks for students, such
as maths or science activities
Reading and discussing picture
books
Viewing and manipulating
visual images on the interactive
whiteboard
Creating films and digital animations
Visual scaffolds, posters and
cards to assist students in everyday activities and routines
Visual images as stimulus for
writing or designing activities
such as poetry or classroom
displays
Use of videos to illustrate ideas
or key points, such as viewing different versions of Shakespeares
Shylock on YouTube

ATOM

ISSUE 65 SCREEN EDUCATION

78

Modelling how to extract

information from factual texts
and photos
Discussion of the interplay
between written and visual
images
Analysing characters
expressions in picture books
Using images as a storytelling aid
Viewing a film and writing a
review about key elements
Learning about key film techniques in order to make short
video clips
Deconstructing visual images in
relation to film in order to write
critical responses

The distinction between learning through and learning about is

important. Whether a teacher analyses an image (as shown in
the Benetton advertisement discussion in the previous section)
or uses a visual text to illustrate a concept or idea will depend
on the broader purpose of the learning experience. Its apparent that teachers in the project regularly utilise visual images
for a variety of reasons. If we apply the student engagement
framework, teachers appear to use visuals at different levels.
While the affective is a powerful element when students
respond to a visual or multimodal text, the use of visual
images in student engagement incorporates this in a more
purposeful way. So while students may connect with a visual
text for a variety of reasons from popular culture references
to the immediacy that a visual image offers the critical factor
is then how the teacher develops this as part of the bigger
learning experience.

Dan from our earlier scenario notes how scaffolding students

to discuss visual images garners an enthusiasm, which then
leads from reading and viewing into writing. Enthralled by the
story, its then possible to step back and analyse how the visual
elements work in a picture book, before using them as inspiration for their own writing. In another lesson, the class read the
wordless graphic novel The Arrival by Shaun Tan. They used this
as inspiration for writing haikus about the characters situation,
adding their own digital images to their written text. Hands-on
learning activities, with students taking their own photos or
creating images, further builds their engagement with the
tasks they are involved in.
Vanessa, working with an early years class, shows a digital animation program that they will use to create their own
animations. Students work together to create a script in which
two Australian animals will be digitally animated, speaking
the words that the children are writing. As they embed facts
about Australian animals into their scripts, students are keen
to develop their story in preparation for adding the visual and
animated aspects. The excitement and enjoyment they gain in
planning and seeing their work on the big screen is obvious.
Each of these examples serves to illustrate the use of visual
texts in classroom learning, either as the vehicle for conveying
information or the object of study itself. While the inclusion of
images may initially motivate students to engage with the task,
it is the pedagogy around the visual resource and task that
develops the more significant level of engagement. This entails
supporting high intellectual challenge, the development of
high-level operative skills as well as a high affective response
to the various aspects in the lesson, including the visual elements.

Engagement for all students

There is an obvious need to support students from difficult
socioeconomic circumstances, who may be likely to disengage
with schooling, often at an early age. Motivating them through
visuals, as well as learning about the visual and multimodal
texts that engage them, is one aspect of engagement. At
the same time, this work has implications for all students,
both in Australia and internationally. Australian youth spend
over two hours watching television and other screen media
each day, while the average daily screen time for eight- to
eighteen-year-olds in the US is four and a half hours.27 The

attraction and prevalence of the image in the wider media

further confirms the importance of both engaging students
and providing them with the tools to enjoy, understand and
critique. The classroom activities described above, as well as
many similar scenarios in the Fair Go Project, suggest that
teachers understand the power of visual images to attract
their students interest. The critical element is how they extend
this when using images to craft learning that engages students
at high cognitive, operative and affective levels. Visual images
may well pique a disengaged learners attention, but it is what
follows and surrounds this initial attraction that makes images
matter for all students.
This article has been refereed.
Dr Jon Callow lectures in primary English at the University of
Sydney. His research areas include visual literacy, multimodal
literacies, and issues of equity and pedagogy for students living in
poverty.

Endnotes

ATOM

ISSUE 65 SCREEN EDUCATION

Peter J Lang et al., Looking at Pictures: Affective, Facial,

Visceral, and Behavioral Reactions, Psychophysiology,
vol. 30, no. 3, 1993; Shahira Fahmy et al., Visual AgendaSetting after 9/11: Individuals Emotions, Image Recall, and
Concern with Terrorism, Visual Communication Quarterly,
vol. 13, no. 1, 2006; Shahira Fahmy & Wayne Wanta, What
Visual Journalists Think Others Think: The Perceived
Impact of News Photographs on Public Opinion Formation,
Visual Communication Quarterly, vol. 14, no. 1, 2007; David
Bordwell, Poetics of Cinema, Routledge, New York, 2008.
2
Helene Joffe, The Power of Visual Material: Persuasion,
Emotion and Identification, Diogenes, vol. 55, no. 1, 2008.
3
Surendra N Singh, V Parker Lessig, Dongwook Kim, Reetika
Gupta & Mary Ann Hocutt, Does Your Ad Have Too Many
Pictures?, Journal of Advertising Research, 2000, p. 11;
Deborah J MacInnis & Linda L Price, The Role of Imagery in
Information Processing: Review and Extensions, Journal of
Consumer Research, vol. 13, no. 4, 1987, pp. 47391.
4
David Buckingham, The Media Literacy of Children and Young
People: A Review of the Research Literature on Behalf of Ofcom,
2005.
5
James Paul Gee, What Video Games Have to Teach Us About
Learning and Literacy, 1st edn, Palgrave Macmillan, New
York, 2003; Amanda Lenhart, Kristin Purcell, Aaron Smith
& Kathryn Zickuhr, Social Media & Mobile Internet Use
among Teens and Young Adults, Pew Internet & American
Life Project, 2010; Andrew Burn & David Parker, Making
Your Mark: Digital Inscription, Animation, and a New Visual
Semiotic, Education, Communication & Information, vol. 1, no.
2, 2001, pp. 15579.
6
ACARA, The Australian Curriculum: English, Australian
Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority, 2011,
www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/English/Rationale,
accessed 16 January 2012.
7
Allan Luke, Critical Literacy in Australia, Journal of
Adolescent & Adult Literacy, vol. 43, no. 5, 2000.
8
WJT Mitchell, What Do Pictures Want?: The Lives and Loves of
Images, University of Chicago Press, Chicago, 2005.
1

Malcolm Barnard, Approaches to Understanding Visual Culture,

Palgrave, New York, 2001; Marita Sturken & Lisa Cartwright,
Practices of Looking: An Introduction to Visual Culture, 2nd edn,
Oxford University Press, New York, 2009.
10
ibid., p. 6.
11
Jon Callow, Literacy and the Visual: Broadening Our Vision,
English Teaching: Practice and Critique, vol. 4, no. 1, 2005.
12
Gunther R Kress & Theo van Leeuwen, Reading Images: The
Grammar of Visual Design, Routledge, London & New York,
1996, p. 12.
13
Joffe, op. cit., p. 85.
14
SA Tinic, United Colors and Untied Meanings: Benetton
and the Commodification of Social Issues, Journal of
Communication, vol. 47, no. 3, 1997, pp. 325.
15
Paul E Willis, Learning to Labour: How Working Class Kids Get
Working Class Jobs, Saxon House, Farnborough, Eng., 1977.
16
Margaret Wild & Anne Spudvilas, Woolvs in the Sitee, Penguin,
Camberwell, 2006.
17
For a more detailed summary of the most recent phase of
the Fair Go Project see Priority Schools Programs, Teachers
for a Fair Go, Curriculum Leadership, vol. 9, no. 13, 2011,
http://www.curriculum.edu.au/leader/teachers_for_a_fair_
go,33406.html?issueID=12413, accessed 16 January 2012.
18
Jennifer A Fredricks, Phyllis C Blumenfeld & Alison H Paris,
School Engagement: Potential of the Concept, State of the
Evidence, Review of Educational Research, vol. 74, no. 1, 2004.
19
Basil B Bernstein, Pedagogy, Symbolic Control, and Identity:
Theory, Research, Critique, Taylor & Francis, London &
Washington, DC, 1996.
20
RW Connell, Schools and Social Justice, Temple University
Press, Philadelphia, 1993.
21
For example, the Save our Schools website lists a number
of studies and media releases dealing with educational and
equity issues in government schools. See www.saveour
schools.com.au, accessed 15 August 2011.
22
Willis, op. cit.; RW Connell, op. cit.; Debra Hayes, Martin
Mills, Pam Christie & Bob Lingard, Teachers & Schooling
Making a Difference: Productive Pedagogies, Assessment and
Performance Studies in Education, Allen & Unwin, Crows
Nest, 2006.
23
Fair Go Team, School Is for Me: Pathways to Student
Engagement, NSW Dept. of Education and Training, Sydney,
2006.
24
Jon Callow, Debbie Hunter & Teresa Walsh, Visual Literacy,
in School Is for Me: Pathways to Student Engagement, ibid.
25
David Buckingham, Moving Images: Understanding Childrens
Emotional Responses to Television, Manchester University
Press, Manchester & New York, 1996; Julian Sefton-Green
& David Parker, Edit-Play: How Children Use Edutainment
Software to Tell Stories, British Film Institute, London, 2000.
26
All teachers in the current research project agreed to be coresearchers with the Fair Go team and thus their names are
used in the data. All student names are pseudonyms.
27
Australian Communications and Media Authority, Trends
in Media Use by Children and Young People: Insights from
the Kaiser Family Foundations Generation M2 2009 (USA),
and Results from the Acmas Media and Communications in
Australian Families 2007, 2010, http://www.acma.gov.au/
webwr/_assets/main/lib310665/trends_in_media_use_by_
children_and_young_people.pdf, accessed 16 January 2012.
9

79