Exploring the perspectives of Australian primary school teachers on students learning about project management

Sante Delle-Vergini, Douglas Eacersall, Chris Dann, Mustafa Ally
University of Southern Queensland, Australia
Subrata Chakraborty
University of New England, Australia

Projects have been used in primary school education for over a century. As managing projects has become increasingly critical in the workplace, educators have an opportunity to prepare young children with the necessary project management knowledge and skills to succeed in the future. However, in the absence of empirical studies, it is difficult to know if, when and how this preparation is taking place. This study sought to explore the perspectives of Australian primary school teachers about children learning project management. Thirteen primary school teachers participated over a seven-month period. Qualitative data from interviews and surveys were transcribed and entered into NVivo. Reflexive thematic analysis was used to analyse, interpret, and present a story reflective of the teachers' experiences and thoughts. The results revealed several project management concepts being taught to students but fell short of a comprehensive approach to managing projects. While more challenges than benefits were reported by teachers, their recommendations for improving project management teaching in the future was the most important finding. As the first empirical study of primary school teachers and their perspectives on teaching project management, researchers and educators now have a foundation of knowledge to develop more comprehensive ways of teaching this important discipline to primary school students.
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Authors: Sante Delle-Vergini is a PhD student at the University of Southern Queensland, Australia. His research interests include project management, projects in society, 21st century skills, educational technology, online curriculum design, and artificial intelligence. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9762-0326 Email: sante.delle-vergini@unisq.edu.au Dr Douglas Eacersall is a Senior Lecturer (Researcher Development and Applied AI) and Learning Advisor (Higher Degree by Research) at the University of Southern Queensland, Australia. His research interests include higher education, researcher development, applied artificial intelligence, and popular culture. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2674-1240 Email: douglas.eacersall@unisq.edu.au Dr Chris Dann is an Honorary Senior Lecturer in Curriculum and Pedagogy Digital Technology at the School of Education, University of Southern Queensland, Australia. His research interests include machine learning, student satisfaction, feedback, adult learning, online learning design, educational assessment, enacted curriculum, student retention, and artificial intelligence. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7477-0305 Email: chris.dann@unisq.edu.au Dr Mustafa Ally is an Honorary Associate Professor in Information Systems at the School of Business at the University of Southern Queensland, Australia. His research interests include cryptocurrencies, blockchain technology, online payment systems, trust and online shopping, and technology adoption. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6370-3860 Email: mustafa.ally@unisq.edu.au Dr Subrata Chakraborty is a Senior Lecturer at the University of New England. He received his PhD from Monash University. He is currently also a Visiting Fellow at the University of Technology Sydney and with Griffith University. His current research interests include data analytics, machine learning, image processing, and optimisation. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0102-5424 Email: subrata.chakraborty@une.edu.au Please cite as: Delle-Vergini, S., Eacersall, D., Dann, C., Ally, M. A. & Chakraborty, S. (2024). Exploring the perspectives of Australian primary school teachers on students learning about project management. Issues in Educational Research, 34(3), 928-952. http://www.iier.org.au/iier34/delle-vergini.pdf