This thesis is a series of meditations, stories and poetry focusing on living in classrooms with children, and on the meaning and place of education and schools in our lives. This writing is the emergent result of a commitment to the seeking of a generous language to understand and describe the work of teachers in schools, to the hope for human(e) and compassionate spaces for children to spend their days, to living with openness and creativity, to the having of challenging and wonderful conversations about life with children, and to the freedom to raise questions about the ways children and teachers (might) live together in schools. This writing is a story emerging at the point of intersection between what we might learn from children if we listen to them and remember them, and reflections on readings in ethics, education and literature.

The push for educational reform in the province of Quebec, Canada has brought to the foreground many ideas about what needs to be done to improve the learning experience of students. While there has been some movement in the primary grade levels, change in the secondary level is still in its infancy. There are some teachers, however, in high schools who have been on the cutting edge of educational reform. The purpose of this study is to look at participation within a secondary classroom where the philosophy of the reform is being acted upon. The study, qualitative in design, is a type of ethnographic investigation of a teacher and students in a Grade VII language arts classroom. The classroom is a part of an exclusive program, namely the Alternative Learning Program, nested in a public high school in the Montreal area. / Using various means of data collection such as field notes and interviews, the researcher examines the various dimensions of participation as it unfolds in this particular classroom. The researcher identifies these dimensions as assigned and shared participation. The data suggests that dynamics beyond assigned and shared participation are also evident. The dynamics, identified as participative tone, contribute to student views of the uniqueness of this particular learning environment. To present a trustworthy description of what is observed, however, the investigator shows situations in which participation is not apparent. These situations are identified as participative resistance. The researcher deduces that participation and participative resistance need to be viewed as context-bound and are, in many respects, points on a continuum. / Attempts have been made in the research to allow the study participants to express their views. Through interviews, students share in their own words what participation means to them. Their words add depth to understanding of what student participation is. The study suggests that notions of the child-centered or student-centered classroom, while commendable, are not necessarily an aspiration to strive for. / The study affirms that the teacher plays a key position in the classroom environment. The study begins by showing the various roles that the teacher assumes in her daily practice. Views of the teacher are presented along with perceptions of the students and the researcher to determine the various roles played out in this site. The study concludes that the teacher conducts her practice by exceeding the boundaries of her roles so identified. / The study shows that the classroom does not stand in isolation, but is subject to various influences from the school, as well as the community at large. The researcher identifies these influences as context and conditions using another site as a point of reference. The secondary sight brings clarity to what the researcher observes. The researcher concludes that in addition to communal influences, learning in the primary site takes place under the banner of what is defined as an arts-oriented curriculum. The arts-oriented curriculum contributes to the sense of community in the classroom. But data also suggest that the classroom does not always function as a community. In spite of the teacher's good intentions, tensions sometimes foster a competitive rather than collaborative spirit among the students.

Numerous educational research studies have shown that students perceptions of teacher-interpersonal behaviour and classroom environment are positively associated with students attitude to science and students cognitive achievement in science. Laptop computers have become increasing popular in science classrooms since the late 1980s; however, their effects on students perceptions of teacher interpersonal relationships or classroom environment have not been studied.The aim of this study was to assess the effectiveness of laptop computers in science classrooms, in terms of the effects laptops had on students perceptions of teacher-student interpersonal behaviour and classroom environment. Students attitude to science and their cognitive achievement in science were also assessed.Student data were collected from 433 grades 8 and 9 science laptop students in 23 classrooms, in 14 Independent schools, in four Australian states. Both quantitative and qualitative data were collected.The study confirmed the reliability and validity of the QTI and ICEQ for use in science laptop classrooms, described students perceptions of teacher-student interpersonal behaviour and classroom environment in science laptop classrooms and identified associations between students perceptions of teacher-student interpersonal behaviour and classroom environment with each of the student outcomes. The attitudinal outcomes were found to be more strongly associated with both perceptual areas, than were the cognitive achievement outcomes.The study also found that there was a difference in the way science laptop and non-laptop students perceived teacher-student interpersonal behaviour and classroom environment, but that there was no significant difference I the attitudinal and cognitive achievement outcomes between science laptop and non-laptop students.

Thesis (Ed. D.)--University of Toronto, 2005. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 264-272).

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Kent State University, 2007. / Title from t.p. of pdf file (viewed on Apr 30, 2008). Advisor: Rafa Kasim. Keywords: classroom assessment, assessment environment, achievement motivation, classroom environment, assessment, Oman. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 353-375).

Thesis (M.I.T.)--The Evergreen State College, 2007. / Title from title screen viewed (6/19/2008). Includes bibliographical references (leaves 115-120).

Thesis (M.S.)--Missouri University of Science and Technology, 2008. / Vita. The entire thesis text is included in file. Title from title screen of thesis/dissertation PDF file (viewed June 18, 2009) Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2008. / The entire dissertation/thesis text is included in the research.pdf file; the official abstract appears in the short.pdf file (which also appears in the research.pdf); a non-technical general description, or public abstract, appears in the public.pdf file. Title from title screen of research.pdf file (viewed on July 31, 2009) Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.S.)--Michigan State University. Interdepartmental Physical Science, 2008. / Title from PDF t.p. (viewed on July 28, 2009) Includes bibliographical references (p.122-123). Also issued in print.

Thesis (MSD (Play Therapy))--University of Pretoria, 2004. / Includes bibliographical references.