Annotation The diploma thesis focuses on problems and diagnostics of selected pre-concepts of technical education. The theoretical part is divided into several thematic units relating to constructivism, pre-concepts and technical education at primary school. In the practical part there are investigated affective and cognitive level of selected pre-concepts by questionnaire. Afterwards it was evaluated standard of integration of one pre-concept where the cognitive maps were used. The respondents were the pupils of 4. and 5. classes of primary school ZŠ Grünwaldova in České Budějovice.

This diploma thesis deals with the issues and the diagnostics of preconceptions relating to technical education. The theory is focused on the process of learning, constructivist pedagogy, content of technical education for the first grade of primary schools and methods of data collection in educational research. In the practical part investigates grades of integration of preconceptions using questionnaires and cognitive maps. In the practical section provides information about the performed research, processing results and the conclusions drawn from them. The respondents were pupils of 4th and 5th grade of elementary school Nuselská in Havlíčkův Brod.

Teacher thinking and teaching action of a PE teacher in organising joint activities is studied. The theoretical and methodological bases are founded on principles of the ecological paradigm, the perspective of the reflective practitioner, the perspective of the situated action and the sociocultural-orientated constructivism. The “constructivist conception of school teaching and learning” is adopted to analyse the relationships in the interactive triangle on which thinking is analysed. To study the organization of joint activities, analysing the interactivity process has been adopted. To find out and analyse teacher’s thinking, self-confrontation interviews have been carried out and discourse analysis has been adopted. Is revealed that: the organisation of joint activity represents a suitable scenario for the study of teacher thinking, thinking about these actions enables to identify conditions that govern teaching actions, this is determined and governed by both the immediate, unpredictable and uncertain nature of the interactivity situations and the teacher’s implicit theories, and that thinking in action and thinking on action are very often different. / S’analitza el pensament d’una professora d’EF sobre l’acció docent en l’organització de l’activitat conjunta (OAC). El paradigma ecològic, la perspectiva del professional reflexiu, la perspectiva de l’acció situada i el constructivisme sociocultural aporten fonaments teòrics i metodològics. S’adopta la «concepció constructivista de l’ensenyament i l’aprenentatge escolar» per estudiar les relacions en el triangle interactiu, en les quals s’analitza el pensament. Per estudiar l’OAC s’adopta el model d’anàlisi de la d’interactivitat en una unitat didàctica d’EF. Per conèixer el pensament es realitzen entrevistes d’autoconfrontació, i per interpretar-lo s’adopta l’anàlisi del discurs. Es posa de manifest que: l’OAC representa un escenari adequat per estudiar el pensament del professorat, la reflexió sobre l’acció permet identificar condicions que dirigeixen l’acció docent, aquesta està condicionada i dirigida pel caràcter immediat, imprevisible i incert de les situacions d’interactivitat i per teories implícites de la professora, el pensament en i sobre l’acció són diferents en molts moments.

Zwei Beispiele dafür, wie das Klavierstück Erinnerung Robert Schumanns im Musikunterricht allgemeinbildender Schule vorkommt, werden zur Darstellung gebracht und in einer musikdidaktischen und verstehenstheoretischen Kontextualisierung mit den Bezugspunkten Gegenstand und Subjekt als komplementär-gegensätzliche Ausgangspunkte diskutiert. Im Interesse einer Lösung der als problematisch angesehenen ›Das-Eine-oder-das-Andere‹-Dichotomie wird ein Ausblick auf eine anders angelegte, eine dezidiert konstruktivistische inspirierte Perspektive hinzugefügt. / Two examples will be examined of how the keyboard piece Erinnerung by Robert Schumann appears in the music lessons in a general education school. They will also be discussed in the context of music didactics and conceptualization-theory with object and subject as both complementary and contrasting reference points. With the goal of resolving the problematic “one or the other” dichotomy, emphasis will be placed on differently designed, constructivism-inspired perspective.

This thesis presents a case study of Microsoft Corporation’s Partners in Learning (PiL) program, an example of transnational policy authority in education, with two embedded case studies of PiL in Jordan and South Africa. The constructivist and rationalist approaches highlight the changing nature of governance through the cultural and strategic shifts that led to Microsoft’s policy role in education. Microsoft’s strategic profit interests and its corporate-social-responsibility aspiration to play a policy role in education influenced its educational footprint. From a top-down perspective, Microsoft used supranational forms of power by implementing its global PiL blueprint through similar PiL programs worldwide. From a bottom-up perspective, Microsoft used “localization practices” by engaging different subnational agents and used different strategies to gain footholds in two very different political and policy contexts. Microsoft’s top-down and bottom-up approaches link the supranational policy arena to the subnational or subgovernmental. Microsoft’s economic power and strategic engagement gave it entry into education. It gained expert authority from its extensive history and experience in education. Its expert authority was experessed through strategic relationship building through diplomacy and partnerships, policy networks, and the sharing of best practices. The company was however not able to claim absolute legitimacy because of resistance in both countries. This thesis highlights that at the governmental level, sovereignty does not disappear when transnational corporations become involved in education at the national level. Instead, nation- states become strategic sites for the restructuring of global policy roles. The Jordanian government became a public facilitator, by working with Microsoft to implement a stand-alone PiL program. The South African government became a public integrator, by implementing the PiL program within government policies and programs. Power was also redistributed within both countries, moving away from government education officials towards the monarchy in Jordan and the presidency in South Africa. The findings of the study highlight the need for corporations engaged in public education to be governed within instituted accountability measures, for appropriate partnership frameworks, and for governance tools that can both effectively engage companies in education and ensure that they work within common goals and values set out by international education organizations.

This thesis presents a case study of Microsoft Corporation’s Partners in Learning (PiL) program, an example of transnational policy authority in education, with two embedded case studies of PiL in Jordan and South Africa. The constructivist and rationalist approaches highlight the changing nature of governance through the cultural and strategic shifts that led to Microsoft’s policy role in education. Microsoft’s strategic profit interests and its corporate-social-responsibility aspiration to play a policy role in education influenced its educational footprint. From a top-down perspective, Microsoft used supranational forms of power by implementing its global PiL blueprint through similar PiL programs worldwide. From a bottom-up perspective, Microsoft used “localization practices” by engaging different subnational agents and used different strategies to gain footholds in two very different political and policy contexts. Microsoft’s top-down and bottom-up approaches link the supranational policy arena to the subnational or subgovernmental. Microsoft’s economic power and strategic engagement gave it entry into education. It gained expert authority from its extensive history and experience in education. Its expert authority was experessed through strategic relationship building through diplomacy and partnerships, policy networks, and the sharing of best practices. The company was however not able to claim absolute legitimacy because of resistance in both countries. This thesis highlights that at the governmental level, sovereignty does not disappear when transnational corporations become involved in education at the national level. Instead, nation- states become strategic sites for the restructuring of global policy roles. The Jordanian government became a public facilitator, by working with Microsoft to implement a stand-alone PiL program. The South African government became a public integrator, by implementing the PiL program within government policies and programs. Power was also redistributed within both countries, moving away from government education officials towards the monarchy in Jordan and the presidency in South Africa. The findings of the study highlight the need for corporations engaged in public education to be governed within instituted accountability measures, for appropriate partnership frameworks, and for governance tools that can both effectively engage companies in education and ensure that they work within common goals and values set out by international education organizations.