"The purpose of this study was to determine expressed interest of high school seniors in Polk County in a Home Economics curriculum at Polk Community College. Florida rapidly expanded its post-high school educational programs in the 1950's and 1960's. In 1950, there were three state universities in Florida with a combined enrollment of approximately 20,000 students; presently, there are nine state universities with a combined enrollment that exceeds 92,000 students"--Introduction. / Typescript. / "August, 1975." / "Submitted to the Department of Home Economics Education in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science." / Advisor: Agnes F. Ridley, Professor Directing Research Problem. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 63-64).

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The purpose of this study is to examine the initial steps in curriculum planning in Jefferson School. In light of the charactersitics for the modern school (given in the document), the study provided suggestions and recommendations for further steps.

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This is a study to determine a curriculum pattern based on field psychology.

M.Ed. / GENERAL AIM To investigate the components of teacher competence and how these aspects can be managed to enhance teacher effectiveness. GROUP AIM To investigate the components of effectiveness and how this can enhance teacher competence. SPECIFIC AIM Determine the contribution of curriculum interpretation towards improving effectiveness in the teaching and learning situation; To obtain teacher opinion as to the extent that curriculum interpretation enhances effectiveness; and Devise a possible strategy whereby curriculum interpretation support effectiveness and enhance teacher competence.

published_or_final_version / Education / Master / Master of Education

This study explored the way biological knowledge is transformed when it moves from its disciplinary form to a high school biology curriculum, and how this occurred in successive versions of the life sciences curriculum implemented in post-apartheid South Africa. Bernstein’s (1996, 1999) conceptualisation of biology as an hierarchical knowledge structure, the recontextualisation of knowledge, and the implications for social justice formed the theoretical framework to the study, as did Aikenhead’s (2006) distinction between traditional and humanistic approaches to science education, and Schmidt, Wang and McKnight’s (2005) concept of curriculum coherence. Firstly, I attempted to elicit core concepts and conceptual organisation in biology from the writings of the distinguished biologist Ernst Mayr, two foundational biology textbooks, and interviews with two professors of biology. Seven concepts emerged: the cell, inheritance, evolution, interaction, regulation, energy flow and diversity, which I arranged in a hierarchy according to Mayr’s “three big questions”, “what?”, “how?” and “why?”. The theory of evolution was highlighted as the key integrating principle of the discipline. Secondly, I considered biology in the school curriculum by means of a literature review and synthesis of the changing goals of a school science education. Five broad categories of objectives were derived: knowledge, skills, applications, attitudes and values , and science as a human enterprise. Aikenhead’s (2006) terminology captured the shifts in emphases of these objectives over time.Thirdly, I analysed the stated objectives and content specifications of the three most recent versions of the South African life sciences curricula – the Interim Core Syllabus (ICS), the National Curriculum Statement (NCS) and the new NCS. The NCS represented a dramatic swing away from the traditional approach of the ICS, while the new NCS reverts to a more traditional approach, though with more humanistic content than in the ICS. Both the ICS and t he NCS were found to be deficient in one of the three key conceptual areas of biology. The conceptual progression of the material is strongest in the new NCS, and weakest in the original NCS. The conclusion was drawn that, of the different curricula, the new NCS has the greatest potential to induct South African learners into the hierarchical structure of biology, and represents a positive contribution to the goal of transforming education in South Africa.

Recent Policy documents, such as the ANC Draft Framework on Education and Training of 1994, the White Paper on Education and Training of 1995 and the Curriculum Framework for General and Further Education and Training of 1996 have proposed broad participation by major stakeholders, in particular teachers, in the process of curriculum planning and decision-making. This represents a major shift from past practices which limited teacher decision-making to the classroom. These proposals are made against the background that South African education is undergoing a period of transition from a system which was driven by apartheid policies to a more progressive and democratic system. This study sought to investigate the responses of teachers in Clermont, a semi-urban black settlement in Durban, to the policy proposals which state that their participation in curriculum planning and development should be extended. It also aimed to explore their thinking concerning the implications such proposals may have for them. A non-proportional random stratified sample of teachers in promotion and non-promotion posts was drawn to survey teacher responses to these proposals. A mailed "self administered" questionnaire was used as the research instrument for this study. The major findings which emerged from the survey are: Teachers in Clermont believe that they have a major role to play and that role should not be limited to the classroom. They regard decisions made about curriculum as directly affecting them. Despite their support for extended participation in curriculum planning and development they feel they are not adequately prepared for that role. They regard themselves as having inadequate knowledge of the theory and practice of curriculum. In particular, they think they lack skills in designing and planning curricula because they were not adequately prepared during their teacher training, as well as the fact that they were not given such opportunities in the past. Teachers expressed the view that participation in curriculum development could facilitate their professional development. Teachers also acknowledge the importance of the contribution of other stakeholders such as parents and pupils in making curriculum decisions. In the light of the major findings the study recommends the following: A holistic approach to teacher development should be adopted which provides teachers with basic skills and concepts in curriculum and curriculum development through seminars and workshops. In the context of the implementation of a new curriculum which is outcomes-based, workshops and seminars could facilitate the process of introducing the new curriculum and also enabling teachers to be critical of their practice. In order to create a favourable climate for teacher development, teacher development must be integrated with whole school development through, for example, in-service training which is school-focused. To facilitate whole school development the creation of forums, such as teacher forums where teachers could discuss current debates, and learning forums involving teachers, pupils and parents where problems facing schools would be explored are recommended. In the longer term pre-service teacher education should be restructured to include training in curriculum development in order to adequately prepare student teachers in curriculum planning and development. To bridge the gap between schools and colleges of education, universities and the communities, partnerships between schools, universities, colleges of education, and non-governmental organisations, as well as partnerships between schools, communities and the Department of Education at provincial level should be created. / Thesis (M.Ed.) - University of Natal, 1997