published_or_final_version / Education / Master / Master of Education

published_or_final_version / Education / Master / Master of Education

published_or_final_version / Education / Master / Master of Education

This thesis presents teaching fundamentals of digital logic design and VLSI design for freshmen and even for high school students using e-textiles. This easily grabs attention of students as it is creative and interesting. Using e-textiles to project these concepts would be easily understood by students at young age. This involves stitching electronic circuits on a fabric using basic components like LEDs, push buttons and so on. The functioning of these circuits is programmed in Lilypad Arduino. By using this method, students get exposed to basic electronic concepts at early stage which eventually develops interest towards engineering field.

by Koo, Ching Ngan Alfred. / Publication date from spine. / Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 1995. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 194-206). / by Koo, Ching Ngan Alfred. / ABSTRACT --- p.i / ACKNOWLEDGMENTS --- p.iv / A LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS --- p.v / A LIST OF TABLES & FIGURES --- p.vi / A LIST OF APPENDICES --- p.viii / Chapter CHAPTER ONE --- INTRODUCTION --- p.1 / Background to the Study --- p.1 / Aims of the Study --- p.3 / The Significance of the Study --- p.4 / The Research Questions --- p.6 / Definition of Terms --- p.7 / Chapter CHAPTER TWO --- THE CURRICULUM INNOVATION --- p.9 / Background to the Change --- p.9 / Nature of the Change --- p.10 / Characteristics of the Change --- p.11 / Image and Aims --- p.12 / Principles of Curriculum Organization --- p.16 / Teaching Strategies --- p.18 / Content --- p.19 / Time --- p.21 / Assessment --- p.22 / Scale of the Change --- p.23 / Characteristics of the Change in Context --- p.24 / How AS Design and Technology was Promoted in Schools --- p.25 / Nature of AS Design and Technology --- p.28 / Public Perception of Sixth Form Education & the Subject --- p.28 / Characteristics of Schools Offering AS Design and Technology --- p.31 / Characteristics of Prevocational Education --- p.31 / Teacher Development Prior to Innovation --- p.34 / Problems in Implementing Design and Technology in the Sixth Form --- p.36 / Availability and Use of Resources --- p.38 / Priority Given to Design and Technology by Schools --- p.39 / Teachers' Experience and Training --- p.40 / Status of Design and Technology --- p.42 / Student Achievement in Public Examinations --- p.43 / Chapter CHAPTER THREE --- LITERATURE REVIEW --- p.45 / Implementation Studies --- p.45 / Three Approaches to Curriculum Implementation --- p.45 / Fidelity Perspective --- p.46 / Mutual Adaptation --- p.51 / Curriculum Enactment --- p.52 / Three Perspectives on Curriculum Change --- p.53 / Technological Perspective --- p.53 / Political Perspective --- p.55 / Cultural Perspective --- p.57 / Implementation as a Process of Change --- p.60 / The Decision-making Process of Adoption --- p.61 / Who Makes Adoption Decisions --- p.61 / How Adoption Decisions Are Made --- p.61 / Factors Associated with Adoption --- p.66 / Factors Affecting Implementation --- p.69 / Characteristics of Change --- p.70 / Local Characteristics --- p.71 / External Factors --- p.72 / Problems in Implementing Integrated and Non-academic Subjects --- p.74 / Implementation Studies in Hong Kong --- p.77 / Chapter CHAPTER FOUR --- RESEARCH METHODOLOGY --- p.80 / Collection of Background Information --- p.83 / Survey --- p.84 / Population and Sample --- p.85 / Data Gathering Instrument --- p.86 / Data Gathering Procedures --- p.87 / Case Study --- p.88 / Case Selection --- p.89 / Data Gathering Methods and Instrument --- p.89 / Data Gathering Procedures --- p.92 / Document Analysis --- p.95 / Data Analysis --- p.95 / Limitations of This Study --- p.96 / Chapter CHAPTER FIVE --- FINDINGS --- p.99 / Adoption Decision in Schools --- p.100 / Characteristics of Schools Involved in this Study --- p.100 / Characteristics of the Principals --- p.102 / Characteristics of the Assistant Principals --- p.102 / Characteristics of the Teachers --- p.103 / Sixth Form Subjects Offered by the Schools --- p.105 / Adoption Decision-making in Schools --- p.106 / Why Schools Did Not Offer AS Design and Technology --- p.111 / Why Some Schools Offered AS Design and Technology --- p.115 / Implementation of the New Subject in Case Schools --- p.121 / Image and Aims --- p.122 / Curriculum Organization --- p.124 / Teaching Strategy --- p.125 / Content --- p.129 / Time --- p.132 / Assessment --- p.135 / Why the Implementation Occurred as It Did --- p.139 / Difficulties Met by The Teachers --- p.142 / Conclusion --- p.153 / Chapter CHAPTER SIX --- DISCUSSION --- p.157 / Adoption Decision in Schools --- p.157 / Factors Associated with the Adoption Decision --- p.158 / Emergence of New Policy on Sixth Form Education --- p.158 / Appropriateness of Subject to Schools --- p.159 / Nature of Subject --- p.159 / Function of the Subject --- p.160 / Characteristics of Schools Adopting the Innovation --- p.161 / Availability of Appropriate Teacher --- p.162 / Availability of Appropriate Teaching Resources --- p.163 / Supports from the Central Agencies --- p.164 / Adoption Mechanism in Schools --- p.165 / Implementation of the New Subjects in Case Schools --- p.166 / Factors Relating to Implementation in Case Schools --- p.167 / Clarity and Complexity of the Change --- p.168 / Availability of Teaching Resources --- p.169 / Supports from Central Agencies --- p.170 / Supports from School --- p.171 / Credibility of Teacher --- p.172 / Student Adaptability --- p.175 / Chapter CHAPTER SEVEN --- CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS --- p.180 / Conclusions to Research Questions --- p.180 / Recommendations for Improving Present Situation --- p.184 / Suggestions for Further Research --- p.190 / BIBLIOGRAPHY --- p.193 / APPENDICES --- p.206

published_or_final_version / Education / Master / Master of Education

Thesis (MTech (Graphic Design))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2018. / Rapid advances in information technology and the Internet continue to create higher education learning solutions for the networked-world learner. Given the potential of these resources, opportunities and initiatives must be seized to promote the enhancement of student learning in higher education. The promise of faster communication networks and changes in students’ expectations have rendered urgent the understanding of technology and online learning for use in studio-based teaching and learning spaces in the networked global village of the 21st century. Paradoxically, however, the use of e-learning solutions in design-related education remains limited. In studio-based courses such as graphic and architectural design, for example, the facilitation of learning through electronic media at South African universities ranges from the minimal to the non-existent. A hands-on approach to studio-based teaching and learning is preferred, supported by the argument that it is hard to facilitate experiential learning through semi-synchronous online tools. The danger of this unsubstantiated model of thinking is that it is likely to lead to under-usage of Learning Management System (LMS) tools by educators in studio-based teaching and learning spaces. The problem is that no research has been done on this area in South Africa that is capable of providing conclusive evidence on which corrective measures can be based. Hence, the aim of this study is to understand the reasons for the limited adoption and use of LMSs in studio-based teaching and learning in South African higher education design-related disciplines. Within the interpretive epistemological paradigm, a qualitative research approach was adopted to source and analyse interview data from design students and lecturers at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT). An Activity Theory (AT) analytical framework was employed. The findings suggest that reservations regarding the use of LMSs are more a function of prevailing perceptions than they are substantive. Unfounded negative assumptions about the functionality, relevance (usefulness), accessibility and ease of use of the systems emerged as the leading constructions of and explanations for the challenges faced. The study provides not only clarity on LMS usage patterns in studio-based educational spaces, but also useful comparative data on how an activity theory-grounded in ActAD framework can enhance the analysis of LMS activities in studio-based teaching and learning within the curricula for subjects like graphic design and architecture.

According to Dorst and Dijkhuis (1995) the two principal paradigms governing design activity discourse, are Simon's rational problem solving, and Schon's theory of design as a 'reflective conversation with the situation'. The rational problem solving view, that a fixed problem space structures design activity, has reduced the designer to a 'missing person' within design activity research (Dorst & Reymen 2004). This thesis aims to highlight the agency of the designer in structuring and motivating socially situated design activity. Dorst's (2006) framework of 'design paradoxes' suggests that design problems are evolving and unknowable. Design situations are determined through the designer's reinterpretation of the social discourses underpinning design situations, in a similar way to 'problem setting' within 'reflection-in-action' (Schon 1983). While Dorst suggests interpretation relies on intuition, problem setting relies on 'professional artistry' which is 'bounded' by the 'appreciative system' (personal knowledge, values and beliefs) and is essentially 'learnable' (Schon 1983). This thesis explores the correspondence between Schon's theory and contemporary frameworks including 'design paradoxes' (Dorst 2006), 'designerly ways of knowing' (Cross 1982), 'organising principles' (Rowe 1987), and 'creative problem construction' (Mumford et al 2004). It investigates the agency of the designer as evidenced in the use of the 'appreciative system'. This is elucidated using case study analysis of a novice designer, within a tertiary design degree. The case reveals the structured and motivated use of the designer's appreciative system. It indicates the deployment of 'appreciative goals' are fundamental to the 'linking behaviour of designers' (Dorst 2006), enabling design to begin in the absence of 'repertoire' or domain knowledge (Schon 1983), and the acquisition of new repertoire knowledge. These emergent findings offer new pedagogical perspectives both in terms of design expertise, which is normally associated with domain knowledge, and educating domain independent, multidisciplinary designers. Frames or similar 'organising principles' operate in most design fields, and create a 'principle of relevance' for knowledge from multiple domains and disciplines (Buchanan 1992). An awareness and acknowledgement of the objective function of subjective personal and social knowledge is essential in order to locate the 'missing' designer and understand innovative design activity.

Thesis (DTech (Architectural Technology))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2016. / This research explores design-build projects in architectural education. The design-build studio is an alternative to the conventional theory-oriented studio. In design-build projects students both design and build real buildings. Internationally, design-build projects have increased rapidly in architectural programmes over the past decade. Literature suggests that design-build projects are relevant for architectural education, but that there is a definite need for more theoretical and critical exploration. Design-build projects in the context of this study are defined as socially responsive, inhabitable, full-scale investigations. The value of this pedagogical construct for educators, students, architectural practice and society in general was an underpinning theme guiding this exploration. Design-build projects are located on the boundary between theory and practice. This research provides a view into my journey across this boundary, immersing myself in both the theoretical and practical. Principles of the designbuild process and design research mapped the research path. The research process commenced with the initiation of and active participation in a number of design-build constructions. Through critical reflection on the construction experiences and the literature, specific pedagogical and practice implications were explored. Cultural historical activity theory provided me with a sense of theoretical direction in this journey. Collaboration as a pedagogical tool and the possibility of exposing students to alternative practice possibilities were foregrounded as being uniquely situated within the design-build project. The value of this research is the contribution it makes to the current international call for a clearer understanding of the pedagogical and practice merit of design-build projects.

The purpose of this thesis was to develop a drafting core curriculum that could be successfully implemented at any middle school in any state.