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This research used quantitative and qualitative research methods to examine the experience, intentions and practice of pre-service primary students in order to determine the nature of student teachers’ paradigms of science. The research identified a dissonance between the students’ aspirational rhetoric and the actuality of the experiences they provide for learners. This research framed the discourse of teaching and learning in terms of objectivist and constructivist paradigms. It was argued that the objectivist paradigm of science teaching has historically been dominant in science classrooms; however, it is the constructivist paradigm which is linked to an effective pedagogy in science education. This research examined the students’ school qualifications in science, stated confidence levels in teaching the 5-14 science curriculum and the students’ views on how best to take forward teaching and learning in primary science. The students were fond to be poorly qualified in science; however, it was shown that this has not had any adverse effect upon the pre-service students’ self-rated confidence levels in teaching primary science. Confidence indices were found to be consistently high, albeit slightly lower with respect to Physics. This research has also shown that there is a consistent pattern of increasing confidence with progression through the BEd course, and consistently low levels of confidence with respect to the PGCE students. This study identified a dissonance between the pre-service students’ experience of science and how they propose to teach science. It was shown that the pre-service students’ experience was negatively orientated, and firmly rooted within the objectivist paradigm. However, it was found that the students’ stated intentions are framed in terms of the constructivist paradigm. The research also determined that the students are confident that they possess the professional skills necessary to take forward teaching and learning in primary science.

This research investigated the correlation between the principal's leadership style and the school organisational climate. The literature study established the importance of leadership in the context of an open and positive school organisational climate. In this regard, it was found that a supportive principal leadership style is positively related to an open and positive school climate, where educators are engaged and enjoy high collegiality and intimate relationships. The school organisational climate as variously defined, relates to educator perceptions of principals or school management behaviour and refers to how educators experience, especially the management aspects that influence the climate in the school. Thus, organisational climate is related to the quality of experiences an educator has in the school, which is expressed in how he or she experiences the school life. The Organizational Climate Descriptive Questionnaire for Elementary Schools, consisting of six organisational climate descriptive dimensions was used for data collection. The dimensions describe the behavioural aspects of principal leadership namely, supportive, directive and restrictive and educators' behavioural aspects namely, collegial, intimate and disengaged. The behavioural interactions of principals and educators provided the basis for the analysis of the correlation between the principal's leadership style and the school organisational climate. It was established that there was a correlation between principals' leadership styles and school organisational climates. It was found that the organisational climates of the surveyed schools are characterised by principal leadership behaviour that is high on directive behaviour, slightly below average on supportive and restrictive. Educator behaviour was found to be slightly below average on collegial behaviours. Educator behaviour scored below average on intimate behaviour and scored slightly above average on disengaged behaviour. Principal openness behaviour was found to be below average while educator openness behaviour was found to be average which translate to school organisational climates that are relatively closed, which actually indicates a relationship between principal leadership style and school organisational climate. This research therefore draws a conclusion that there indeed is a correlation between school principals' leadership styles and school organisational climates. / Thesis (M.Ed. (Education Management))--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2008.

This study compared the progress in reading and spelling of 256 children in 11 classes in 9 English primary schools in Years 3 and 4, and a partially overlapping sample of 126 children who received additional help with literacy during one year. Teachers and teaching assistants used either Additional Literacy Support (ALS), a highly structured set of small group teaching materials devised by the English National Literacy Strategy, or a wide variety of other materials including other published intervention programmes, reading scheme based, computer based and individually designed interventions, or a combination of ALS and other interventions. The influence of a broad range of contextual factors were investigated, especially whether children's qualities, school factors such as SocioEconomic Status and class size, and delivery differences made significant differences to the outcomes of the different interventions. The study used a naturalistic quasi-experimental design, in which teachers were asked to record details of their children and interventions without altering their professional decisions, which has not been used before in investigating literacy difficulties in context. ALS was marginally more effective than other interventions in the majority of classes, but was clearly superior in value for money terms. Children's qualities did not appear to affect outcomes. Although children receiving additional help made better than average progress, below average children receiving only class teaching made more progress. Overall catchup was limited, especially in spelling. There appeared to be a larger influence of class teaching than expected. A tentative theory of how class teaching and additional interventions combine is suggested. The study considers how research of this type could be advanced, the need for further development of both class literacy teaching and additional interventions, and raises some questions about national policy towards literacy interventions.