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In this project I investigate university students orientations to learning statistics. The students who participated in my research were studying statistics as a compulsory component of their psychology course. My central thesis is that learning develops in the relationship between the thinking, feeling and acting person and the social, institutional and cultural contexts surrounding him or her. How students orient themselves or position themselves to learn statistics is reflected in their engagement with the learning task and their activities. These activities determine the quality of their learning and emerging knowledge. To understand student learning I draw on the powerful theories of Vygotsky (1962, 1978) and Leontev (1978, 1981). In particular, I extend and apply Leontev's construct of activity (Leontev, 1981). This suggests that individuals act in accordance with their purposes and needs which are shaped by and reflect histories and resources, both personal and cultural. My investigation consists of two studies. Study One is a qualitative exploration of the orientations to learning statistics of five older students. These students sought help with statistics at the Mathematics Learning Centre where I work. My case studies of these students are inseparable from my efforts to help them learn statistics. Study Two is grounded in Study One. The main source of data for this broader study is a survey which was completed by 279 psychology students studying statistics. In keeping with the theoretical framework, my methodology involves a holistic analysis of students and the milieu in which they act. My findings suggest relationships among students affective appraisals; their conceptions of statistics; their approaches to learning it; their evaluations and the outcomes of their actions. In Study One the relationships emerged from the students' descriptions. In Study Two I quantified the ways in which variables related to each other. Structure for the data was provided by means of correlations, factor analysis and cluster analysis. For this study I also interviewed students and teachers of statistics. My data support the systemic view of teaching and learning in context afforded by my theoretical perspective. Learning statistics involves the whole person (Semenov, 1978) and is inseparable from the arena of his or her actions. The goal of statistics education is surely to enable students to develop useful, meaningful knowledge. My findings suggest that for many of the participants in my project this goal was not being met. Most of these students reported their reluctance to learn statistics and described adopting primarily surface approaches to learning it. A range of conceptions of the subject was expressed, but for many of the students statistical meaning was evidently reduced to performance on assessment tasks. Such orientations to learning statistics may lead to it becoming irrelevant and inert information. For a few students, however, the experience of learning statistics led to self development and enhanced perspectives on the world in which we live. My project indicates the diversity of students' experiences. It raises issues as to why we teach statistics today and how the teaching and learning of statistics is being supported at university. //REFERENCES Leontev, A. N. (1978). Activity, Consciousness, and Personality. (M. J. Hall, Trans.). Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall. Leontev, A. N. (1981). The problem of activity in psychology. In J. V. Wertsch (Ed.), The Concept of Activity in Soviet Psychology, (pp. 37-71). New York: M. E. Sharpe. Semenov, N. (1978). An empirical psychological study of thought processes in creative problem-solving from the perspective of the theory of activity. Soviet Psychology, 16(1), 3-46. Vygotsky, L. S. (1962). Thought and Language. Cambridge, Massachusetts: The M.I.T. Press. Vygotsky, L. S. (1978). Mind in Society. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

This research aims to understand critically the activity of teaching and learning of History in a public school of São Paulo state, in Brazil, and its relation to a formation of citizen students. The goal is on the comprehension and critical analysis about the paper of the teachers creating a personal meeting to share the meanings, possibiliting the anticipation of students, and not only the transmission of knowledge without goals. It was realized in a public school, in Mauá city. The students involved was in a third grade, in high school, they study at night. The questions about learning and teaching of History are discussed basing in Bittencourt (1988/1990, 1997/2006), Fonseca (2003, 2004, 2007/2009) e Kuenzer (2004) that points to criticize expositive classes justifying this like a problem that makes the students have a passive position in History classes and in their lives. The learning-teaching process is understood like a social-historic activity culturally situated, focusing a paper of language in the social interaction in the introduction of learning. The theory is based in TASHC- Social Historic cultural Activity theory. According to a Vygotskian theory (1925/2004, 1930/2004, 1930a/1991, 1934/2001), Leontiev (1978) and Engeström (1987, 1999 ,2001). The metodology adopted is a critical collaboration research, according discussed by Magalhães (1994/2007, 1998b/2007, 2003/2007, 2004, 2009p),it is a intervention research focused in the comprehension of context and collaborative production of actions that aims the cohesion of groups, harmonious intimacy and the power of the people that participated of the research. The results reveal that the change in the mediated action, that are in function of needs of perceiving , act and understanding the objective reality, stimulating the exercise of citizen action more participative and critical.

The think aloud method has been used in this research to generate data that reveals the thoughts of participants of a study while they are performing tasks. The pioneers of this method, Simon and Ericsson, have provided a method to analyze the data so as to obtain meaningful results. However, this analysis method is complicated and time consuming. Most researchers use some form of categorization to perform their analysis. Critical incidents were used to categorize the data gathered in the tests conducted as part of this research. This research proposed the use of tenets of Activity Theory while performing data analysis so that the cultural and environmental aspects that influence task performance are identified and addressed as part of the analysis. A data analysis template was created that directs the analyst to follow activity theory while performing the analysis. Sample data was gathered using the Think Aloud Method. The results obtained after analyzing this data using the proposed Activity Theory Based method were compared with those obtained when the same data was analyzed using a representative traditional method of analysis. The research included positive critical incidents, negative critical incidents and level of severity of negative critical incidents as the dependent measures. No significant differences were found between the two methods based on these dependent measures. Task type had a significant effect on the number of positive and negative critical incidents identified. / Master of Science

This study is about graduate students’ discourse practices in a classroom text-based synchronous computer-mediated discussion (SCMD). Cultural historical activity theory (in short, Activity Theory) is the primary theoretical lens through which the data are analyzed. Engeström’s (1987) Activity System model among the various theoretical positions or perspectives of activity theorists has guided the overall process of the study, especially having the researcher focus on the identification and description of the model’s six key elements: subject, object, tool, community, rule, and division of labor. Several emerging themes were identified. An activity system in SCMD is situated in multiple dimensions of context: physical/biological, cultural/institutional, social/ emotional, and cognitive/intellectual dimensions; instead of a single utterance, a topical pair needs to be investigated as a unit of analysis in SCMD research; a collective unit of actions emerges through the discourse activity; and, finally, an ecological view is needed to understand an activity system as a whole. Based on these emerging themes, I conclude with a modified model of the activity system in the situation of dialogical transactions such as SCMD. / text

Video games and the social effects that they inflict upon society and the individual have been a highly debated subject. While studies have been made in regards to several social issues and their connection to video games, there was little research in regards to physical game gatherings like LAN-parties, as well as larger game gatherings like Dreamhack, and what the social effects of having physical contact with other people are at these gatherings. The goal with this study was to answer the question: “What are the social effects for the individual when participating in physical video game gatherings?”. This was done through a qualitative study by conducting five semi-structured interviews at the physical game gathering called Umeå Game Night that was located in the Umeå cultural center Klossen at Ålidhems Centrum. Four of the participants were male and one female. “Snowball-sampling” was used to gather the participants for the study through Game Night’s Facebook group. However, this sampling was unsuccessful when no participants were gained from it. Instead I had to take direct contact with people at the game gathering. The interviews were all done during the game gathering in their facility and were then transcribed for analysis with two types of methods; an inductive analysis that was backed up by a deductive analysis in the form of Activity Theory using Engeström’s model of Activity Theory. The results of this study showed that physical game gatherings helped to overcome some negative social effects that the participants thought surrounded online game as well as other social problems that they brought up during the interviews, like toxic behaviour, discrimination, and the feeling of not being welcome. There was an overwhelmingly positive reaction from the participants when being at the game gathering. Being able to socialize with other people proved to be the main motivation. However, even though physical game gatherings showed to improve negative social effects surrounding game, the learning process was still difficult to overcome for new players, and participating in these game gathering may even have negative results in keeping the new players interested in wanting to play as well as participate at the physical game gatherings. This was mainly because of the skill disparity between the experienced players, who were the majority at the game gathering, and the new players, who would feel potentially frustrated from seeing the experienced players being much better than themselves. However, the less experienced female participant in the study indicated that this issue may still be overcome, but more research needs to be done to see how big the issue surrounding the learning process when playing games at game gatherings actually is, and if there are ways to solve it.

The riding lesson situation is complex and dynamic. Riding instructors must look at both the horse’s and the rider’s actions in order to provide useful and relevant instruction. The aim of this study is to describe and understand riding instructors’ pedagogical practice when giving riding lessons. The theoretical basis for the study is Engeström’s model for studying activity. His analytical model consists of six interrelated ”knots”. The activity system is continuously active through contradictions between the knots, ”knotworking”. These contradictions can occur at four different levels. By studying them we can arrive at an understanding of the structure of an activity system, in this case riding lessons. Ten riding instructors were interviewed and a number of riding lessons were observed. In collecting data, it was important to capture the use of language in pedagogical terms. The themes that formed the basis of interviews and observations were the concepts of communication, feeling and communication of feeling, as well as the roles of the riding instructor, the pupil and the horse. When the activity model was applied to the data, a number of knots could be observed, with the riding instructor as the subject and the pupil as the object. For example, the tools were horses and instructions. Parents and the riding hall were identified as rules and other riding instructors were the community. Finally, young people assisting the instructors and the pupils with grooming were identified as division of labour. Many of the statements and actions observed during riding lessons can be summarised in that they reflect a focus on the horse. Some riding instructors state unequivocally that what is most important to them is what is best for the horse. I call this an ”activity system with horse focus”. Another variety of statements and actions from the instructors shows an orientation towards the pupils. The instructors say that they have ambitions to support pupils in their learning. This is what I call an ”activity system with pupil focus”. Finally, there are statements and actions by instructors that can be explained by such things as ignorance, indifference or incompetence. One riding instructor says that there is a considerable amount of routine in her lessons. I call this an ”activity system with routine focus”. In this activity system the objects and goals often change places, unlike what happens in the other two activity systems. For different reasons, occasionally the routine focus switches into the other two activity systems. Contradictions were seen at four different levels within the three activity systems identified, e.g.: (1) riding instructors wanting to communicate with their pupils about the feeling of riding but lacking the words for it; (2) parents expecting that their child will get the opportunity to ride at every lesson and riding instructors feeling a pressure to meet these expectations even though they believe that the pupils need theory as well as practice; (3) the instructor wanting to improve her teaching but being inhibited by old traditions; and (4) modern teaching methods having developed within the general school system that require pupils to assume a degree of responsibility for their own learning. This stands in contradiction to the controlled riding lesson where pupils do not have much scope for acting on their own. Riding instructors give priority to the pupils or the horses to different degrees. They often act more or less subconsciously when they give pupils instruction or give them feedback. The horses are at the centre of the riding school and the riding lesson. The horses are a large part of the riding instructors’ everyday life and influential on their thinking about riding instruction. From an educational perspective, however, it would be desirable for instructors to place pupils and their learning at the centre. The need for and importance of pedagogical and didactic education for riding instructors ought to be emphasised. It is a challenge to develop riding lessons with an emphasis on optimising the conditions for pupils’ learning without taking the focus away from the horse and its wellbeing.

This thesis presents an exploration of the nature, extent and characteristics of a disciplinary Inclusion Room (IR), from the perspectives of students and staff in a South West secondary school. Over the past five years, this school has significantly reduced fixed term exclusions and improved school attainment against Local Authority averages. This research presents an organisational response to a socio-cultural problem and the paradoxical lenses of social inclusion and discipline. The research uses Cultural Historical Activity Theory (CHAT) as a theoretical and methodological framework. I explore inclusion and professionalism using the perspectives of nine students who entered disciplinary IR and nine staff who knew the students. Inclusion constructs explored include participation, equality and diversity. Professionalism is deliberated through a continuum of managerial control/discretionay judgement, individualistic models/collegial approaches and bureaucratic/continuous learning dimensions. Mixed methods used include document analysis, an on-line questionnaire, student and staff interviews, visual timelines and observations of the students in classrooms. The analysis of IR considers primary, secondary and tertiary contradictions along with disciplinary rules, community and division of labour/power constructs amongst participants to develop a rich understanding of the context. Exploratory data, in the form of a questionnaire, suggests that the students and staff broadly share understanding of inclusion policy, practice and culture in this school. Interviews, further informed by examination of documents, student timelines and observations, show how a disciplinary IR is integrated into, and complements, educational processes; participation (being there), equality and diversity, within the school. Professionalism is characterised by discretionary lenses, collegial working and continuous learning governed by problem solving to support that educational vision. Findings from this work are generalisable as the research develops experience of the school in a naturalistic manner and is illustrative of expectations rather than formal predictions. Nevertheless, schools can use the findings to consider how a disciplinary IR can complement educational processes through increasing participation, equality and diversity. Goals for inclusion can be enhanced through collaborative partnerships and active, ongoing engagement amongst students and staff to develop the educational experience.

This research investigated the perceptions of student-teachers and lecturers regarding Initial Teacher Education (ITE) for secondary teachers in Zimbabwe. The ways in which factors in and between the university and school settings for ITE shaped learning to teach were investigated. Student-teachers’ and lecturers’ perceptions of the development of ideas as student-teachers moved through the different stages of training were also investigated. The study employed a qualitative case study methodology and methods - interviews, biographical questionnaires and document analysis. Data analysis began by defining a priori themes and identifying parts of the interview transcripts that were relevant to these a priori themes. The initial coding was then refined by adding additional codes which emerged from the data to create a final coding template to interpret findings. Activity Theory was used to provide a conceptual map to help describe and analyse the findings. Student-teachers had varied backgrounds and motives for joining the teacher education programme. These were often at variance with the goals of ITE. They had pre-conceived ideas about teaching from their years of schooling, prior training and work experience. Student-teachers were learning to teach in the university setting and attempting to prove their competence in school settings. In both settings students, teachers and lecturers constituted the learning communities. Relationships and availability of tools often determined the kind of support student-teachers were receiving. The factors encountered within and between the two different activity systems shaped learning to teach in various ways. ‘Taken-for-granted’ practices were not questioned and this limited the ways in which ideas presented in the university were used in the school setting. The student-teachers’ professional development, evident both to the students themselves as well as their lecturers, demonstrated not only growth in their pedagogical maturity, but also some deeper insights and the beginnings of their teacher identity. Much literature argues that learning to become an effective practitioner necessitates the use of reflective practice as a tool to resolve contradictions and for processing and internalising the complexities of boundary crossing between settings. The ‘theory-practice’ gap can be viewed as a ‘transformation space’ where teacher identity is often developed. A model to explain learning to teach made up of five elements is proposed: preconceived ideas of teaching, new ideas, contradictions, socialisation and reflective practice. The findings suggest that the university where the study was carried out should harmonise espoused practice and actual practice so that activities are consistent with the notion of concurrent learning. Concerted efforts are also needed to develop collaborative school-university partnerships, which foster reflective practice as a tool to promote professional development. Staff development programmes are needed to develop appropriate working practices. Working conditions for teachers need to be revised by the Zimbabwe government, both to encourage teaching as a desirable profession and to keep pace with changes occurring in pedagogic practice. Further research is needed to investigate how students can successfully negotiate and learn from university-school boundary crossing issues, and what sort of boundary brokers and tools are needed. Contextual factors in Zimbabwe are such that little funding is available to develop ITE. The challenge is to find innovative ways of using scarce resources to produce high quality teachers.

This thesis explores the relationship between physicians’ clinical and educational roles in the context of UK General Practice (GP) education by investigating the experiences of seven GP trainers through an ethnographic approach employing Activity Theory (AT). The Introduction considers the philosophy and structures of GP education and outlines the author’s professional biography to provide context. The Literature Review focusses on the development of medical education as a discrete field and identity formation in medical educators, concluding that: specialist medical educators are a relatively new group; and there is a paucity of knowledge regarding the impact on physicians of occupying dual clinical and educational roles. The thesis then focusses on three Research Questions (RQs), namely: 1. What is the impact of GP trainers’ clinical practice upon their educational work? 2. How does GP trainers’ educational practice influence their clinical work? 3. What are the social contexts for GP trainers’ clinical and educational practice? These questions are addressed within a pragmatic theoretical framework to build up an ethnographic description of the participants’ experiences. Data collection is through semi-structured interviews and observation of video-recorded teaching. Ethical issues associated with the study are discussed in detail, in particular the challenges of “insider” research. Four approaches are used for data analysis: global impressions; word cloud analysis; thematic analysis; and analysis shaped by AT. In answer to RQs 1 and 2, the study finds that GP trainers experience their dual roles as intimately linked, intuitively transferring their skills between their clinical and educational practice. The study also finds that GP trainers reconstruct their professional identities through teaching. With regard to RQ 3, engaging in teaching can lead to internal conflict for GP trainers and tensions with their colleagues, trainees and regulators. These findings are discussed in relation to medical education research methodology and the impact the study on the researcher is explored. The thesis closes by considering the conflicted position the participants occupy, concluding that teaching offers physicians the opportunity to reconstruct their professional identities so they can approach tensions in their practice with a sense of agency and optimism.