<p> This basic interpretive study explored teacher and principal perceptions of reform and accountability and how these perceptions influenced leadership for school-based teacher development and learning. Complexity leadership theory served as the theoretical lens for the study and provided a holistic view of how reform and accountability served as tensions for enacted leadership roles both within and without the complex adaptive system of teacher learning and development. Four principals and twelve teachers participated in this study and reflected a maximum variation sample of teachers and principals across a southeastern state in the United States. The researcher collected data through semi-structured interview questions in one-to-one principal interviews and three teacher focus groups. Additionally, teachers constructed a drawing to illustrate what teacher learning and development looked like in their respective schools. Data from the interviews and drawings were analyzed for emergent themes and theoretical connections. Results found that all of the participants felt pressure from accountability for student performance as measured by state mandated tests. Required/mandated reform, created pressure to change instructional practice to ensure students showed growth and achievement on state mandated tests. Patterns of leadership behaviors for learning and development illuminated the role of principal leadership and context to the dynamic interactions of agents toward the shared need of improving instructional practice and growth. All participants experienced some form of tightly coupled leadership behaviors that stifled the teacher&rsquo;s ability to collaborate and interact with others. While reform and accountability were established to improve growth and achievement, the leadership behaviors oftentimes stifled the learning and development of the teachers. All of the principals and only three teachers&rsquo; responses revealed moderate couplings that supported agent interactions and one teacher experienced loosely coupled leadership behaviors. This study&rsquo;s findings suggest reform and accountability influenced leadership behaviors that tried to control and predict outcomes through information getting sessions or trainings which oftentimes led to static learning environments. Leaders that supported creation, innovation, and sensemaking in their schools, relinquished tight control and fostered collaborative spaces. These findings may be useful as educators endeavor to learn and grow to meet the evolving needs of the twenty-first century.</p><p>

<p> The purpose of this collective case study was to explore digital badging in educational institutions as support for K-12 practitioners struggling to integrate technology into pedagogical practices. The researcher conducted a mixed-method study that captured perceptions about digital badges and follow-up interviews with selected badge users to explore their viewpoints further. The goal was to generate a detailed case description, identify participants&rsquo; self-assessment of technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK), and define those attributes that are deemed important or not useful to <i> Open Badge Course</i> earners that participated in the study. </p><p> Ten individuals from a Northern California region completed the survey and four participated in an interview process. Results from the survey found that participants highly valued the convenience, accessibility, and ability to self-pace afforded by the course. They valued being able to set their own learning goals and to begin and work at their own level of expertise. The game-like features and personal achievement were motivating factors to earn and complete badges. The course experience allowed time for cumulative study to learn and implement technology into teaching. The course experience supported their understanding of technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK). </p><p> The interviews provided detailed information regarding perceptions and experience with the Open Badge Course. Six themes emerged from thematic analysis of the interview data: affordances of course content and course design, recommendations to sustain and improve the course, challenges of course content and course design, ways experience impacted/changed teaching, motivation for learning, and ways experience impacted/changed learning. Participant responses indicated that modifications were necessary for the course to be effective. The areas of challenge included: a lack of timely assessment of learning, constraints from rigor and management of badge levels, lack of relevant or meaningful badges related to the grade level taught, and difficulties with mechanical/operational procedures to access and complete required activities. </p><p> Facing obstacles are not unique to digital badge project developers. The challenges identified in this collective case study provide valuable information for developers in redesigning future iterations of digital badge systems. Recommendations include how development of similar systems for informal professional learning within formal institutions of learning can be effective.</p><p>

<p> As the demand for online higher education increases, community colleges find themselves under pressure to secure qualified faculty members to deliver courses in that modality. The challenge, however, is that there is a dearth of qualified faculty members who are familiar with online instruction tools and who can deliver quality online instruction. To meet that need South County Community College (SCCC pseudonym) created the Online Teaching Certification (OTC) course designed to prepare faculty to teach in the online classroom. </p><p> This qualitative case study sought to examine the experiences and perceptions of 16 faculty members who completed the Online Teaching Certification (OTC) course to determine the extent to which the OTC course effectively contributed to the improvement of their ability to teach online courses and which components of the course warranted improvement. Data included interviews with the participants, site observations, and an analysis of existing documents in order to triangulate perspectives from multiple sources. Malcolm Knowles Adult Learning Theory provided the framework to analyze the data. </p><p> Participants felt the OTC had overall success in preparing them to teach online. The most effective components of the OTC course identified were the structure of the course which was aligned with best practices including the Online Education Initiative&rsquo;s Course Design Rubric, the activities in the course which mirrored those that faculty would use in their own online classes, and the sense of learning community enhanced by classroom activities including discussion forums, peer-to-peer feedback, and instructor interaction with the students. The least effective component was the self-paced format (no firm due dates for assignments) which some of the participants believed impacted the building of community in the course due to irregular participation. Recommendations for policy include requiring administrators who evaluate faculty who teach online to take the course, and requiring faculty who teach online to engage in professional development related to online instruction. </p><p>

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Washington, 2001. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 194-208).

The problem. Teachers have been given responsibility for providing the academic, social and vocational education necessary for students to function as whole and healthy citizens in society. In the United States, public schooling has stood at the center of viable democratic processes. This study examines the extent to which one large, urban school district with a multicultural population, provides multicultural educational opportunities to classroom teachers. Scope of study. The primary questions this study seeks to address include: (1) What multicultural staff development opportunities are available to teachers in the District of Columbia school system? (2) Are teachers given release times to participate in multicultural staff development training? (3) What incentives are provided to encourage teachers to participate in multicultural staff development training? and (4) What resources have been made available to assist teachers with training and development in multicultural education? Chapter one outlines the statement and background of the research topic and research questions. The significance of the study and study's assumptions and limitations are described. In addition, definitions of the key terms used in the study are provided. Chapter two provides a review of the literature on multicultural education. Research on teacher education and staff development and multicultural curriculum development is also reviewed. Chapter three outlines the research design. This includes a description of the data collection and analysis procedure, the population of the study and the methodology used in the data analysis. Chapter four presents the study's findings and chapter five provides a summary of the conclusions, implications and recommendations of the study. Method. A six-point Likert type scale questionnaire consisting of 27 items was designed to measure four categories related to multicultural education training and development opportunities for middle school teachers in three randomly selected middle schools. Subsequently, a total of 57 out of 65 respondents returned questionnaires. In conclusion, an overall review of the qualitative data reveals the level and frequency of participation of middle school classroom teachers within three randomly selected middle schools in multicultural staff development activities. Further, the analysis of the data will serve as a guide for subsequent planning with system-wide training.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-01-26T18:49:47Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 THAIS RUBIA DISSERTACAO.pdf: 638915 bytes, checksum: 7b506eb24608a8ef13632c42a6009d27 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2012-11-22 / The aim of this thesis was to identify and analyze teacher formation on administration course and the use he makes of Information Technology and Communication (ICT) to form the professional administrator, in a scenario marked by uncertainty, and the continued growth of competitiveness and requirements. It is known that teachers who teach the course have the function of enabling these professionals to the labor market, thus this thesis set out to identify what is needed for faculty teaching in the course of administration, in this society full of technology and prepare students for the new demands. This is the question that motivates the existence of this investigation, which involved teachers with varying ages, and students attending the seventh semester of this course, all of a particular institution of higher education, located in the city of Presidente Prudente, upstate São Paulo. The methodology used was a qualitative approach, using the case study method as a driver and the interview as an instrument for data collection and content analysis. The results showed that technological development has brought new requirements to enter and stay in teaching the course of administration, and the desired profile of teacher that our time requires as: never stop studying and learning, pedagogical and didactic knowing; have experience in research, market and classroom; hold teach skills and specific to the teaching in administration course; watch for anything that arises again, as well as the application forms of ICT in order to contribute to the process teaching and learning and assist in the construction of knowledge both inside and outside the classroom. / O objetivo desta dissertação consistiu em identificar e analisar a formação do professor do curso de Administração e o uso que ele faz das Tecnologias de Informação e Comunicação (TIC) para formar o profissional administrador, em um cenário marcado por incertezas, e pelo crescimento contínuo da competitividade e das exigências. Sabe-se que os professores que lecionam no curso têm a função de capacitar estes profissionais para o mercado de trabalho, desse modo, esta dissertação se propôs a identificar o que é necessário para o docente lecionar no curso de Administração, nesta sociedade repleta de tecnologias, e preparar os alunos para as novas demandas. Essa é a incógnita que motiva a existência desta investigação, que envolveu professores com tempos variados de exercício, e alunos, cursando o sétimo semestre do referido curso, todos de uma Instituição particular de Ensino Superior, instalada na cidade de Presidente Prudente, interior do Estado de São Paulo. A metodologia utilizada foi a abordagem qualitativa, valendo-se do estudo de caso como método condutor e da entrevista como instrumento de coleta de dados e análise de conteúdo. Os resultados mostraram que o desenvolvimento tecnológico trouxe novas exigências para o ingresso e a permanência do docente no curso de Administração, e que o perfil desejado de professor, hoje, exige que este profissional: nunca pare de estudar e aprender; esteja preparado pedagógica e didaticamente; tenha experiência em pesquisa, mercado e sala de aula; seja detentor das competências para ensinar e das específicas ao ensino da Administração; esteja atento a tudo que surge de novo, bem como às formas de aplicação das TIC de modo que contribuam com o processo de ensino e aprendizagem e auxiliem na construção do conhecimento tanto dentro quanto fora da sala de aula.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-07-18T17:54:18Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 THAIS RUBIA DISSERTACAO.pdf: 638915 bytes, checksum: 7b506eb24608a8ef13632c42a6009d27 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2012-11-22 / The aim of this thesis was to identify and analyze teacher formation on administration course and the use he makes of Information Technology and Communication (ICT) to form the professional administrator, in a scenario marked by uncertainty, and the continued growth of competitiveness and requirements. It is known that teachers who teach the course have the function of enabling these professionals to the labor market, thus this thesis set out to identify what is needed for faculty teaching in the course of administration, in this society full of technology and prepare students for the new demands. This is the question that motivates the existence of this investigation, which involved teachers with varying ages, and students attending the seventh semester of this course, all of a particular institution of higher education, located in the city of Presidente Prudente, upstate São Paulo. The methodology used was a qualitative approach, using the case study method as a driver and the interview as an instrument for data collection and content analysis. The results showed that technological development has brought new requirements to enter and stay in teaching the course of administration, and the desired profile of teacher that our time requires as: never stop studying and learning, pedagogical and didactic knowing; have experience in research, market and classroom; hold teach skills and specific to the teaching in administration course; watch for anything that arises again, as well as the application forms of ICT in order to contribute to the process teaching and learning and assist in the construction of knowledge both inside and outside the classroom. / O objetivo desta dissertação consistiu em identificar e analisar a formação do professor do curso de Administração e o uso que ele faz das Tecnologias de Informação e Comunicação (TIC) para formar o profissional administrador, em um cenário marcado por incertezas, e pelo crescimento contínuo da competitividade e das exigências. Sabe-se que os professores que lecionam no curso têm a função de capacitar estes profissionais para o mercado de trabalho, desse modo, esta dissertação se propôs a identificar o que é necessário para o docente lecionar no curso de Administração, nesta sociedade repleta de tecnologias, e preparar os alunos para as novas demandas. Essa é a incógnita que motiva a existência desta investigação, que envolveu professores com tempos variados de exercício, e alunos, cursando o sétimo semestre do referido curso, todos de uma Instituição particular de Ensino Superior, instalada na cidade de Presidente Prudente, interior do Estado de São Paulo. A metodologia utilizada foi a abordagem qualitativa, valendo-se do estudo de caso como método condutor e da entrevista como instrumento de coleta de dados e análise de conteúdo. Os resultados mostraram que o desenvolvimento tecnológico trouxe novas exigências para o ingresso e a permanência do docente no curso de Administração, e que o perfil desejado de professor, hoje, exige que este profissional: nunca pare de estudar e aprender; esteja preparado pedagógica e didaticamente; tenha experiência em pesquisa, mercado e sala de aula; seja detentor das competências para ensinar e das específicas ao ensino da Administração; esteja atento a tudo que surge de novo, bem como às formas de aplicação das TIC de modo que contribuam com o processo de ensino e aprendizagem e auxiliem na construção do conhecimento tanto dentro quanto fora da sala de aula.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-01-26T18:49:31Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 dissertacao defesa.pdf: 514622 bytes, checksum: 8a176e7a251394f6609cdba7c12ca2bf (MD5) Previous issue date: 2009-04-02 / The purpose of this research was to verify how professors of a private higher education institution perceived their participation in the University Counsel (CONSU) and how they saw the relationship of this participation to their institutional commitment. The specific objectives of this research were: a) to identify the types of decisions made in the CONSU; b) to identify the participation forms of the professors in the CONSU; and c) to verify if the professors´ participation in the CONSU affected their institutional commitment during the period 2005-2006. The choice of the CONSU as object of this study was due to the understanding that it is the responsible for the superior decision making process within the university institution. Nine members of CONSU participated in the research, being seven of them course coordinators and two professors elected by their peers. For the development of the study we chose the case study with a qualitative approach. As instruments of data collection were chosen a semi-structured interview guide and a document analysis of both the meetings minutes realized in 2005 and 2006 and the institutional bylaws and statutes. The data collection was done directly by the researcher and the data were analyzed according to the procedures of analyzes of qualitative data. Among the main results which were found, due to the existence of a superior counsel in the institution, stands out a management based on the collegiate model. Through her bylaws and statutes, she delegates decision making power to the participants of her superior administrative counsel. The information from the meetings minutes and the speeches from the interviews revealed that, in practice, only academic and pedagogical issues were decided by this board and it lacked decision making power on the financial management of the institution. In spite of not deciding on financial issues, all members of CONSU perceived as important the academic decisions they made, since they had effective reflection in the courses quality of the institution. The academicians who were members of the Superior Counsel manifested an affective commitment as support basis of their participation in the management of the institution. In their perception, to be part of this deliberative board made them feel more engaged with the institution. Participation in management led the academicians to a greater commitment to the institution and to the perception that participation in CONSU means the attribution of trust, opportunity and recognition as consequence of the work developed, leading to satisfaction and motivation in the work environment. / A presente pesquisa teve como propósito verificar como os docentes de uma instituição particular de ensino superior perceberam sua participação no Conselho Universitário (CONSU) e como viram a relação desta participação com o seu comprometimento institucional. Foram objetivos específicos da pesquisa: a) identificar os tipos de decisões tomadas no CONSU; b) identificar as formas de participação dos docentes do CONSU; e c) verificar se a participação dos docentes do CONSU tem relação com seu comprometimento institucional, no período de 2005-2006. A escolha do CONSU para ser o objeto de estudo deu-se por se entender que este é o responsável pela tomada de decisão dentro da instituição universitária. Participaram da pesquisa nove membros do CONSU, sendo sete docentes coordenadores de curso e dois docentes eleitos pelos pares. Para o desenvolvimento do estudo optou-se pelo estudo de caso com uma abordagem qualitativa. Como instrumentos de coleta de dados foram escolhidos um roteiro de entrevista semi-estruturada e a análise documental de atas de reuniões nos anos 2005-2006 e do regimento interno da IES. A coleta dos dados foi realizada diretamente pela pesquisadora e os dados foram analisados segundo os procedimentos de análise de dados qualitativos. Entre os principais resultados encontrados, cabe destacar que, pela existência de um conselho superior na instituição pesquisada, ela adota uma gestão embasada no modelo colegiado. Por meio de seu regimento interno, ela delega poder decisório aos participantes de seu órgão superior de administração. As informações das atas de reuniões e as falas dos docentes revelaram que, na prática, somente foram deliberados por esse órgão, assuntos acadêmicos e pedagógicos, havendo completa falta de poder decisório do colegiado sobre a gestão financeira da instituição. Apesar de não tomarem decisões sobre assuntos financeiros, todos os membros do Conselho Universitário perceberam como importantes as decisões acadêmicas tomadas, tendo reflexo efetivo na qualidade dos cursos da IES. Os docentes membros do CONSU manifestaram um comprometimento afetivo como base de sustentação de sua participação na gestão da instituição. Na sua percepção, fazer parte desse órgão deliberativo fez com que se sentissem mais comprometidos com a instituição de uma forma geral. A participação na gestão levou os docentes a um maior comprometimento com a instituição e à percepção de que a participação no CONSU significa atribuição de confiança, de oportunidade e reconhecimento pelo trabalho desenvolvido, proporcionando, nesse sentido, satisfação e motivação no ambiente de trabalho.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-07-18T17:54:07Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 dissertacao defesa.pdf: 514622 bytes, checksum: 8a176e7a251394f6609cdba7c12ca2bf (MD5) Previous issue date: 2009-04-02 / The purpose of this research was to verify how professors of a private higher education institution perceived their participation in the University Counsel (CONSU) and how they saw the relationship of this participation to their institutional commitment. The specific objectives of this research were: a) to identify the types of decisions made in the CONSU; b) to identify the participation forms of the professors in the CONSU; and c) to verify if the professors´ participation in the CONSU affected their institutional commitment during the period 2005-2006. The choice of the CONSU as object of this study was due to the understanding that it is the responsible for the superior decision making process within the university institution. Nine members of CONSU participated in the research, being seven of them course coordinators and two professors elected by their peers. For the development of the study we chose the case study with a qualitative approach. As instruments of data collection were chosen a semi-structured interview guide and a document analysis of both the meetings minutes realized in 2005 and 2006 and the institutional bylaws and statutes. The data collection was done directly by the researcher and the data were analyzed according to the procedures of analyzes of qualitative data. Among the main results which were found, due to the existence of a superior counsel in the institution, stands out a management based on the collegiate model. Through her bylaws and statutes, she delegates decision making power to the participants of her superior administrative counsel. The information from the meetings minutes and the speeches from the interviews revealed that, in practice, only academic and pedagogical issues were decided by this board and it lacked decision making power on the financial management of the institution. In spite of not deciding on financial issues, all members of CONSU perceived as important the academic decisions they made, since they had effective reflection in the courses quality of the institution. The academicians who were members of the Superior Counsel manifested an affective commitment as support basis of their participation in the management of the institution. In their perception, to be part of this deliberative board made them feel more engaged with the institution. Participation in management led the academicians to a greater commitment to the institution and to the perception that participation in CONSU means the attribution of trust, opportunity and recognition as consequence of the work developed, leading to satisfaction and motivation in the work environment. / A presente pesquisa teve como propósito verificar como os docentes de uma instituição particular de ensino superior perceberam sua participação no Conselho Universitário (CONSU) e como viram a relação desta participação com o seu comprometimento institucional. Foram objetivos específicos da pesquisa: a) identificar os tipos de decisões tomadas no CONSU; b) identificar as formas de participação dos docentes do CONSU; e c) verificar se a participação dos docentes do CONSU tem relação com seu comprometimento institucional, no período de 2005-2006. A escolha do CONSU para ser o objeto de estudo deu-se por se entender que este é o responsável pela tomada de decisão dentro da instituição universitária. Participaram da pesquisa nove membros do CONSU, sendo sete docentes coordenadores de curso e dois docentes eleitos pelos pares. Para o desenvolvimento do estudo optou-se pelo estudo de caso com uma abordagem qualitativa. Como instrumentos de coleta de dados foram escolhidos um roteiro de entrevista semi-estruturada e a análise documental de atas de reuniões nos anos 2005-2006 e do regimento interno da IES. A coleta dos dados foi realizada diretamente pela pesquisadora e os dados foram analisados segundo os procedimentos de análise de dados qualitativos. Entre os principais resultados encontrados, cabe destacar que, pela existência de um conselho superior na instituição pesquisada, ela adota uma gestão embasada no modelo colegiado. Por meio de seu regimento interno, ela delega poder decisório aos participantes de seu órgão superior de administração. As informações das atas de reuniões e as falas dos docentes revelaram que, na prática, somente foram deliberados por esse órgão, assuntos acadêmicos e pedagógicos, havendo completa falta de poder decisório do colegiado sobre a gestão financeira da instituição. Apesar de não tomarem decisões sobre assuntos financeiros, todos os membros do Conselho Universitário perceberam como importantes as decisões acadêmicas tomadas, tendo reflexo efetivo na qualidade dos cursos da IES. Os docentes membros do CONSU manifestaram um comprometimento afetivo como base de sustentação de sua participação na gestão da instituição. Na sua percepção, fazer parte desse órgão deliberativo fez com que se sentissem mais comprometidos com a instituição de uma forma geral. A participação na gestão levou os docentes a um maior comprometimento com a instituição e à percepção de que a participação no CONSU significa atribuição de confiança, de oportunidade e reconhecimento pelo trabalho desenvolvido, proporcionando, nesse sentido, satisfação e motivação no ambiente de trabalho.