O presente estudo objetiva analisar as contribuições de uma proposta de formação continuada de professores para o desenvolvimento profissional de educadoras de Ciclo I, pertencentes a uma escola pública paulistana. A pesquisa focaliza o desenvolvimento em curso, relativo a processos ainda não internalizados na profissionalidade, mas potencializados a partir da experiência formativa. O projeto parte da abordagem crítico-reflexiva da profissionalidade com o objetivo de fomentar a investigação docente sobre a própria atuação pedagógica, mediante experiências de ensino com atividades lúdicas. À luz da acepção histórico-cultural de Vygotsky, define-se jogo educativo como mediador proeminente para a aprendizagem escolar e, de maneira isomórfica, propiciador da emancipação profissional. As estratégias formativas edificam-se sob dois eixos: a) reuniões semanais com as professoras para planejamento e discussão sobre jogos e b) atividades lúdicas realizadas com os alunos. Qualificada como estudo de casos, a investigação está centrada no percurso formativo de duas das docentes participantes, utilizando-se categorias de análise elaboradas a partir da teoria de Aprendizagem Experiencial, de David Kolb, e considerando-se o conjunto de dados advindos de três fontes – videogravações, entrevistas e diário de campo. Os resultados apontam diferenças expressivas em relação à maneira como o projeto proporcionou às professoras refletirem sobre sua prática pedagógica e se apropriarem do referencial ludo-educativo. A comparação dos casos evidencia que, paradoxalmente, a professora menos experiente formulou saberes da experiência mais sofisticados que sua colega – com maior tempo de carreira. Essa distinção indica que, na emancipação docente, estão implicados diferentes modos de aprender, preponderando os mecanismos de observar, indagar e resolver problemas. Também acentua que o desenvolvimento profissional é um processo multilinear e multifatorial, não sendo suficiente associá-lo a tempo de exercício profissional. A investigação revela que a formação experiencial é profícua para implantar práticas lúdicas de ensino, favorecendo a reflexão através da troca de saberes e vivências entre professoras/formadora e entre professoras. Embora a proposta formativa, empreendida num curto intervalo de tempo, demonstre que as professoras apreenderam conhecimentos e os incorporaram à sua prática, o nível de integração se constituiu, sobretudo, no plano aquisitivo e performático de aprendizagem. Nesse sentido, sobressaem-se as seguintes necessidades para a área de formação de professores, especialmente sob a perspectiva da ludo-educação: a) programas de formação de médio e longo prazo promoveriam a consolidação de um sistema conceitual complexo e integrado ao desenvolvimento profissional; b) a variação das estratégias formativas, bem como o apoio contínuo ao educador – desde o planejamento até a avaliação das experiências – são aspectos essenciais do trabalho do formador; c) a aprendizagem docente depende de assegurar, no contexto escolar, espaço permanente de reflexão sobre a ação pedagógica / The present study aims to analyze the contributions of a proposal of a continued teacher’s formation for professional development of educators of 1st Cycle, belonging to a São Paulo’s public school. The research focalizes the current development related to processes not yet internalized in the professionality, but potentialized since the formative experience. The project is based on the critical-reflexive approach of professionality aiming to promote the academic investigation on the proper pedagogic acting, by means of teaching experiences with playful activities. In the light of Vygotsky’s historical and cultural meaning, we define the educative game as a proem inent mediator of scholar learning and in an isomorphic manner, propitiator of professional emancipation. The formative strategies are built on two axes: a weekly meetings with the teachers to plan and discuss the games; by playful activities made with students. Qualified as study of cases, the research is centralized on the formative course of two teachers, using analysis categories elaborated since the Experiential Learning theory by David Kolb, and considering all the data deriving from 3 sources: video recordings, interviews and camp daily journal. The results show expressive differences related to how the project provided the teacher’s to think on it pedagogical practice and to the appropriation of the playful educative referential. Comparing the cases points out that, paradoxically the less experienced teacher formulated knowledge of the experience more sophisticated than her colleague – with a longer career. This distinction indicates that, in the academic emancipation, several manners of learning are included, preponderating the observation, questioning and problem solving mechanisms. It also underlines the professional development of a multilinear and multifactorial process, not enough to relate it to a professional exercise period. The research reveals that the experiential formation is rich to implant playful practices of teaching, benefiting thinking by means of knowledge and experiences exchanges between teachers/molder’s and between teachers. Although the formative proposal, made in a short time, shows that teachers seized knowledge and incorporated it to their practice, the integration level is constituted, mainly, on the acquisition and performatic plans of learning. Thus, the following needs stand out for the teachers’ formation area, especially under the playful educational perspective: (a) short or medium term formation programs promotes the consolidation of a complex conceptual system integrated to professional development; (b) formative strategy variations, as well as continuous support to educator since planning until experience evaluation – are essential aspects of the molder’s work; (c) the teacher’s learning academic apprentice ship depends on the assurance, in the scholar context, of a permanent space of reflection on the pedagogic action

Submitted by Taciano Moraes (tacianomm@gmail.com) on 2017-09-29T16:36:46Z No. of bitstreams: 2 license_rdf: 0 bytes, checksum: d41d8cd98f00b204e9800998ecf8427e (MD5) BR Version - Original.pdf: 4465890 bytes, checksum: 59080162de336729aeb135f1d903423a (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Raphael Vilas Boas (raphaelboas@ibict.br) on 2017-09-29T19:18:38Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 2 license_rdf: 0 bytes, checksum: d41d8cd98f00b204e9800998ecf8427e (MD5) BR Version - Original.pdf: 4465890 bytes, checksum: 59080162de336729aeb135f1d903423a (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-09-29T19:18:39Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 2 license_rdf: 0 bytes, checksum: d41d8cd98f00b204e9800998ecf8427e (MD5) BR Version - Original.pdf: 4465890 bytes, checksum: 59080162de336729aeb135f1d903423a (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015 / CAPES / Em um mundo onde a tecnologia modifica cada detalhe de nossa sociedade em uma velocidade cada vez maior, é preocupante que a forma como desenvolvemos nossos líderes esteja melhorando tão devagar. Apesar de inúmeros estudos mostrarem que a liderança é um dos fatores que mais influenciam o sucesso de projetos e de mais de U$ 14 bilhões serem gastos anualmente com desenvolvimento de liderança, mais da metade das organizações acredita que não o esteja fazendo de forma eficaz. Uma das metodologias mais eficientes para o desenvolvimento de liderança dentro das organizações é a Aprendizagem Experiencial, proposta por David Kolb, mas ainda se observa pouca padronização no modo como ela é utilizada, com diversas abordagens diferentes e resultados muito variados. Por esta razão, este estudo propõe um modelo padronizado para o uso de dinâmicas de grupo como um meio para ajudar alunos de tecnologia a praticar habilidades de liderança. Um primeiro piloto foi executado com resultados e feedback bastante positivos, que indicam o potencial de sua aplicação para outras habilidades e contextos. / In a world where technology is changing every single detail of our societies, schools, and organizations in a skyrocketing speed, it is worrying that the way we develop our leaders is improving so slowly. With numerous studies showing that leadership is one of the factors that impact the most on software projects’ success, it is worrying that more than $14B are spent yearly with leadership development and, still, most organizations believe they are not being effective. One of the most efficient methodologies for leadership development inside companies is the Experiential Learning from David Kolb, but it still has some problems in gaining traction inside universities due to their difficulty of simulating practical experiences. Many different approaches have been tried with various results and little standardization is perceived on the way they are used. For this reason, this study proposes a framework for using group activities as a means to help technology students practice leadership skills. A first pilot was executed with pleasant results and feedback from students, but more experiments are necessary to ensure its application for other skills and contexts.

An estimated 1.5 million underemployed or unemployed college graduates have one or more college degrees, and many have high loan debt. Policy makers, students, and institutions of higher education are all concerned with the question of how prepared students are to enter the workforce upon graduation, yet little is known about whether internships are a strategy to improve career preparedness and gainful employment after graduation. Guided by Dewey and Kolb's experiential learning theory, the purpose of this nonexperimental study was to evaluate the impact of internships on career preparation from the perspective of graduates, specifically to evaluate whether graduates perceive participation in an internship improved their level of career preparedness in human services related fields. Post-internship survey data were acquired from a group of 21 graduates using the Career Benefits of CO-OP/Internship Experience instrument who were enrolled in a degree program at various colleges and universities in southeastern Virginia. These data were analyzed using a paired t test to compare pre and post internship perceptions of career preparedness. Results indicate a statistically significant improvement between the pre-internship and post-internship perceptions (p = .05). Furthermore, the study offers support to the notion that experiential learning may impact career success. This result indicates that internships may have a positive impact on career progression and gainful employment after graduation. The positive social change implications of this study includes recommendations to policy makers and university leaders to construct academic programs that incorporate internship opportunities, particularly to promote overall student success and future gainful employment.

Understanding the practical implications related to experiential learning is complex. It is important to first view experiential learning as an umbrella term under which work-based learning (WBL) is housed. To further particularize, there are different avenues for students to pursue work-based learning opportunities (WBLOs), with internships and cooperative education being two. Although these are not new learning environments, understanding and clearly defining them (to both internal and external bodies) is increasingly necessary. In Kentucky, WBLOs are part of the political discourse on postsecondary education. The Council on Postsecondary Education (CPE) and local economic development agencies have incorporated strengthening and growing WBLOs into their strategic plans. This demand is echoed by students and parents. By interviewing faculty with varying enrollments in their WBLOs, this study set out to explore influences on the development and implementation of these experiences from their perspective. The dissertation is written in three manuscripts, including a companion piece written in collaboration with Robert Boone that examines WBLOs from a complementary faculty (McCrary) and student perspective (Boone). It situates the problem of practice (WBLOs) in the current landscape of Kentucky Community and Technical College System. The second manuscript describes anticipated and unanticipated findings related to the development and implementation of WBLOs drawn from my interviews with WBLO coordinators across the state. Selected examples include the role of the advisory board and faculty background on the development of WBLOs and stakeholder preparation and conveying benefits to the community during implementation. The third manuscript explores obstacles encountered and offers potential avenues to circumvent or overcome said obstacles based on information collected through the interviews of this qualitative, exploratory study. This dissertation will be of use to both senior administrators interested in increasing WBLOs at their institution and to faculty who are interested in offering the opportunities to their students. This study offers insight to current practices related to WBLO development and implementation and offers potential avenues to overcome obstacles.

The Center of Graduate Schools (2015) published a report detailing applications, enrollment, and trends in graduate schools across the nation showing that approximately one third of all first-time graduate school applicants in master’s degree programs utilizing the GRE assessment identify their career path in either business or teacher education. The purpose of this study was to examine the lived experiences of classroom teachers who concurrently pursued graduate studies to earn a master’s degree in education and to understand how adult learning provided opportunities for personal growth and the attainment of professional goals. Individual interviews and two focus groups were conducted to uncover the essence of experiences across participant stories. Seven themes emerged from the data: 1) Teacher-scholars’ reasons for returning to higher education varied based on their personal and professional needs, 2) The teacher-scholar experience elicits a vast array of emotions, challenges, and successes, 3) Teacher-scholars were self-driven to start their programs however intrinsic and extrinsic motivation provided encouragement for continued desire for success, 4) Teacher-scholars’ support systems were integral to their success in their master’s programs, 5) Teacher-scholars were reflective about their teaching and learning and used reflection as a tool to improve their professional capabilities, 6) Teacher-scholars used concrete learning experiences to bring their learning into their classrooms and professional lives, and 7) Teacher-scholars’ educational journeys provided opportunities for here-and-now learning as well as increased marketability for a future in the field of education. Additionally, a revision to David Kolb’s Experiential Learning Cycle (2015) was presented. Participant data highlighted collaboration as a necessary component to teacher-scholar success yet it was not addressed in Kolb’s original model. Results from this study can be used to inform teacher education programs as well as teacher-scholars on the expectations, experiences, and perceptions of teachers who concurrently pursued higher education.

In a large urban district in Ohio, 29.2% of Grade 5, 28.7% of Grade 8, and 45.7% of Grade 10 students passed the state test in science. School district administrators formed a community partnership with local science institutions in order to provide students with hands-on place-based learning experiences intended to improve science academic achievement in PK-Grade 5. The purpose of this qualitative program evaluation was to determine the level of implementation of that place-based program by examining the efficacy of the teachers' embedded professional development and their experiences with the training components. Bruner's theory of cognitive development was used to examine teachers' needs in facilitating the program. A stratified random sample of 659 PK-Grade 5 teachers from 73 district elementary schools was selected, and 57 teachers responded to an anonymous online survey of 5 open-ended questions. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis to identity factors that enhanced or impeded the implementation of place-based education programming based on their professional development. The key findings indicated that over half of the participants viewed resources as lacking, training as limited, and planning that is too time consuming, and complicated. Participants expressed the need for clarity regarding resources and more training on how to plan for and integrate the placed-based approach. The resulting project was an executive summary and interactive workshop for program stakeholders, such as administrators, teachers, and ultimately students, who would benefit from this project by improving the place-based program.

This study has adopted the metaphor of �mind-forged manacles� to explore adolescent transformation within an educational context. It does this by examining the experiences of two groups of people who participated in an intensive, one-off personal development program for adolescents, known as Discovery. The first study involves secondary school students for whom the program was part of the school curriculum. The second study consists of an older group of people who did the program during their adolescence and outside the formal education system. The third study is a contemplation of transformation derived from my experience as researcher during the course of completing this thesis. In an attempt to reflect the perspectival worldview from within which the study is created I have drawn on a range of theorists. To integrate their ideas I created three different �lenses� or ways of viewing the data. The first lens is developed from consciousness theory, the second from process philosophy and complex self-organising systems theory, and the third from individual humanistic psychology. The educational pedagogy is holistic and embraces developmental models of thinking and learning. The study uses participant reflection to argue that a program of intentionally focussed challenges, combined with the support that enables these challenges to be successfully met, can be transformational for many young people. It suggests that the complex postmodern world requires teachers to be aware of their own and their students� consciousness, and demands learning experiences that are deliberately focussed on helping the process of consciousness transformation rather than only on achieving predetermined outcomes. Transformation is understood as a shift to a different order of consciousness in which it is how one sees rather than what one sees that changes. With each shift towards a new order of consciousness the mind-forged manacles are loosed and individuals accept increasing responsibility for their lives and how they live them. Educational programs can be developed to assist this process.

Hobby activities can be viewed through the lens of informal, free-choice learning. A wide range of hobbies combine fun and learning-intensive practices, and can contribute to scientific literacy. Hobby learning involves clear goal orientation, persistence and effort, and often results in more richly and strongly connected knowledge; traits highly valued in both in and out-of-school science learning. In this study, I used koi hobbyists as subjects to discover and explore hobbyists' information-seeking strategies under different learning scenarios. I approached koi hobbyists' learning about koi and their koi hobby in both quantitative and qualitative ways. I designed a Stage of Engagement Model to illustrate koi hobbyists' engagement with their hobby, and adapted Falk and Dierking's Contextual Model of Learning to explain how personal, socio-cultural and physical contextual factors affect koi hobbyists' learning. An instrument was developed to assess koi hobbyists' experience with keeping koi, knowledge about the hobby, motivation/goals, interaction with other hobbyists, and the information-seeking strategies they used under different learning scenarios. I administered this questionnaire to koi hobbyist communities in the U.S. Pacific Northwest and online. Based on the quantitative analysis, the results supported my hypotheses that koi hobbyists chose different information-seeking strategies based on personal contextual factors such as previous experience, motivation and learning goals; socio-cultural contextual factors such as interactions with other koi hobbyists; and physical contextual factors such as the nature of the problems they encounter. Koi hobbyists also chose different information-seeking strategies based upon their stage of engagement with their hobby. The long-term potential of this study is to offer insights into how learners construct their knowledge by applying different learning strategies under different personal, socio-cultural and physical circumstances, and to provide a framework for the future study of other kinds of hobbies and hobbyists that will help to promote public scientific literacy. / Graduation date: 2012

Il presente lavoro di ricerca ha avuto come obiettivo principale quello di studiare e verificare se sia possibile educare alla solidarietà responsabile. In particolare dopo una ricostruzione teorica attorno al tema, si è approfondita la questione sul campo attraverso un’analisi di tipo quantitativo e qualitativo di due modelli pedagogico-didattici realizzati in Italia e in USA. I risultati a cui siamo giunti consentono sia di affermare che l’educazione può essere considerata un fattore chiave per favorire comportamenti solidali, sia di poter progettare nuovi itinerari di ricerca e d’intervento pedagogico in questo ambito. / This research had as main objective to study and verify if it is possible to educate for responsible solidarity. In particular, after a theoretical reconstruction around the theme, the issue has been deepened through quantitative and qualitative analysis on two teaching-learning models in Italy and in the US. The results we have reached allow us both to say that education can be considered a key factor in promoting prosocial behaviors, both to design new routes for research and educational intervention in this area.

How do conventional performance-based models of drama in high schools serve to oppress students? How can Applied Drama models serve to emancipate students? This thesis invites educators to imagine drama programs in high schools as being capable of employing the use of imaginative dramatic arts processes for their emancipatory potential aimed to break oppressive habits and to rehearse alternative dialogue and action in the lives of students. Drama processes in high schools could be designed within an emancipatory paradigm of curriculum-making. Instead of designing drama programs around the goal of producing scripted theatre performances, drama programs in high schools can be designed with the goal of engaging students imaginations. Specifically, Applied Drama processes have the potential to nurture students social and moral imaginations which, in turn, allow students to become more empathetic. Moreover, through dramatic role-play, students enter an imaginary world and rehearse alternative ways of acting in the world. If the dramatic role-play addresses issues of oppression in the world, then the imaginary world presents scenarios in which students can rehearse emancipatory ways of acting and thinking about their lived reality. Specifically, Applied Drama processes are best suited for emancipatory, imaginative drama programs in high schools. In this thesis, I also discuss the importance of reflection in emancipatory drama processes.