This dissertation examined the interaction between effective community college faculty and students at a selected regional community college in Massachusetts. More specifically it: (a) explored the viewpoints, values and behavior of effective community college faculty regarding effective teaching; (b) described what effective community college faculty do in and out of the classroom; and (c) explored faculty viewpoints, values and behavior regarding faculty-student interaction in and outside of the classroom. The research was qualitative in nature, consisting of systematic observations of five effective community college faculty interacting with students in the classroom supplemented with open ended interviews of faculty. The results of the study validate earlier research on effective college teaching and they suggest that there are four "hidden characteristics" that help to explain why some community college professors are particularly effective. Each faculty member (a) overcame personal adversity; (b) was inspired by past teachers; (c) has a distinct identity as teacher/messiah; and (d) needs students as much, if not more, than their students need them. These characteristics are significant in that they have not been previously reported. Attention is shifted from looking solely at a teacher's command of the subject, organizational skills and rapport with students. Attributes such as charisma, altruism and dedication seem to be significant. For these faculty, teaching is more than an occupation; it's a dedication to leave the world a better place, an opportunity to make a difference in another's life, and a chance to enhance one's own life through a kind of immortality, that of remembrance.

The purpose of the study was to identify the most effective map scale to use in on initial math/map scale lesson to be taught in math class at the middle school level. Consideration was made to ensure that the scale lesson would be developmentally valid and consistent with regard to both the mathematics and social studies curriculums. The study was conducted at an urban middle school in selected grade 7 classes during June, 1988. The method of conducting the study reflected throughout the mathematical perspective on the scale issue. Four alternative map scales were compared and an additional fifth scale was examined for transfer value. I was hypothesized that the target scale, 1" = 400 miles, exactly divisible by 8 and 16, would lead to greater student success at the required task: finding distance between specified pairs of cities on a map of South America. The scale study, while examined from a mathematics perspective, was positioned within the broader context of global education. The math/map scale lesson was examined with regard to the discipline of geography within the social studies department. This map approach to teaching mathematical scale moved a math class problem from abstract to real. Gains were mathematical and geographical. There were gains in three areas: (1) mathematics, (2) geography, and (3) relating mathematics and geography. Major gains in completion of the task required as measured by points assigned for correct responses occurred overall for the four alternative map/scale classes. Although the methodology isolated scale and results showed progression for all groups with a slightly larger average point gain for students using one particular scale, that of the target map, there was not enough difference in progression between groups for the results to be within an acceptable level of significance. Perception/Reality Analysis of students' perceived and actual abilities to complete the designated task of finding map distance using a specified scale indicated the presence of ability and interest on the part of students for learning math/map scale skills.

Research by educators in lifelong learning experiences is one of the most important fields in American education today. Even though adults are usually self-directed and will acquire knowledge or will learn skills to solve immediate problems, they usually need a facilitator and a variety of learning experiences to meet their needs and abilities. One of the learning experiences adults will be seeking is through art museums. Consequently, museums need to focus on how to make museum education more significant for adults by teaching them how to learn in museums. The goal of this exploratory study was to analyze any interesting variables in the effectiveness of three dissimilar treatments, using different interpretive techniques and symbol systems, on adults' understanding of the subject matter, content and style of landscapes. This study was developed around a specific exhibition, "A Return to Arcadia: Nineteenth Century Berkshire County Landscapes." In order to evaluate the effectiveness of the three different learning experiences through different symbol systems, eighty-seven adults were divided into three groups. One group was given a straight, formal slide lecture on the exhibition. The second group participated in an informal gallery presentation in the exhibition. The methodology for this presentation was the discussion/inquiry method. The third group was given a double exposure to the exhibition. The slide lecture was presented as orientation before the participants were exposed to the landscapes in the gallery with the discussion/inquiry method. Each of the three groups was given a post slide test, open-ended questions to answer, and an interview immediately after its particular treatment. The findings from the slide post-test, open-ended questions and interviews seem to indicate that art presented in different symbol systems, environments and interpretive techniques does convey different meaning and concepts. The implication of this exploratory study is that definitive research, using the scientific and naturalistic paradigms, should be completed to investigate the significance of the findings from this study.

The purpose of this study is to make predictions for school change in a school system which has recently implemented a Schools of Choice plan. Goals of this plan include systemwide equity, increased parental involvement, and school improvement which is based on the interests of faculty and parents. This plan provides for School Planning Teams which are charged with planning for school change which is responsive to the wishes of the greater community. In order to ascertain the interests of faculty and parents in the city's five elementary schools, a survey was administered by Schools of Choice officials. This survey was prepared by a committee of teachers, administrators and parents, and was based on the advise of a consultant, similar surveys used in other school systems, and the interests of this community. The survey was administered to all elementary school teachers during faculty meetings, was mailed to parents of preschoolers, and was sent home with all elementary school aged children. Opinions were solicited in the areas of academic enrichment possibilities, program options and forms of organization. Survey results identify areas of convergence and divergence of interests among parent and teacher groups in each of the five schools. These survey results contain information which can be of use to School Planning Teams as they begin planning for school change. The process of using a Schools of Choice program as a catalyst for school change is particularly relevant to the rapidly increasing number of school systems, cities and states, which are turning to choice plans to improve the quality of public education. If parents are to chose schools for their children, the schools must differ from one another in meaningful ways. If parents and teachers together are to plan for school improvement and educational diversity, they need the kind of data which can be provided by an opinion survey as a source of direction.

In a qualitative study of the beliefs and behaviors of four third and fourth grade teachers as they taught mathematics in an industrial Vermont town, teachers were found to have four fundamental common beliefs about how children learn mathematics: (a) children learn mathematical concepts by manipulating or visualizing concrete materials; (b) children learn arithmetic through specific sequenced steps; (c) children learn mathematics through practice and repetition; and (d) children learn mathematics best when they feel good about themselves and experience success in mathematics. Not all of their beliefs are in concert with the learning theories foundational to the 1989 National Council of Teachers of Mathematics Curriculum and Evaluation Standards for School Mathematics. Associated with each belief, the teachers had one or more factors they considered when planning mathematics lessons. They demonstrated a variety of behaviors including classroom activities and strategies concomitant with, although not necessarily congruent with each belief. There were discrepancies most commonly because of tendencies to acquiesce to the pressures of time and curricular expectations (including those expectations from the next year's teachers) and to rely upon the textbook rather than build upon the strength of their convictions and beliefs about how children learn. While teachers believed that manipulating materials helps students grasp and develop concepts about the real world in mathematical terms, there was limited time devoted to the manipulation of materials. Although sequential learning was believed to be valuable, many mathematical concepts such as measurement and geometry were taught out of the context and sequence of similar concepts. Practice was typical in each classroom; repetition was prevalent in two classrooms. Many ways of boosting the confidence of students were demonstrated, although one of the teachers believed she was supportive to students when in fact supportive behaviors were not displayed. Staff development implications include recommendations for teachers to increase their knowledge of constructivism as a way that children learn and of mathematics as a field of knowledge. There are suggested actions for teacher unions, school administrations, state departments of education, post secondary schools of education, and professional organizations.

The purpose of this study is to analyze the impact of vocational education as a process for social control in the United States and Portugal, emphasizing the contributions of industry and the corporate world through educational partnerships. Specifically, the study examines how vocational education is perceived by educators and corporate leaders, and role of industry in either promoting social mobility for students or perpetuating social control. The study also analyzes the 1990 Carl D. Perkins Act and the 1986 Portuguese educational reform. This study uses a comparative/qualitative case study research methodology that includes historical research in vocational/technical education in the two countries, and analysis of data collected in interviews that reflect the perceptions of the interviewees in vocational education.

Mathematics curriculum innovation has been launched in Taiwan recently in order to reflect the changing needs of the 21st century. The underlying assumptions of reform are: a learner-centered approach, emphasis on confluent education, and a problem-solving & reasoning approach. Research has revealed that teachers' beliefs can negatively interact with curriculum reform. On the other hand, some studies document that beliefs have little effect on instructional behavior. Therefore, this study attempts to investigate three questions: (1) what are the teachers' beliefs about the teaching and learning of mathematics in Taiwanese elementary schools and in what ways are teachers' beliefs congruent with the ongoing trend of reform; (2) what is the general picture of teachers' mathematical instructional practices in Taiwanese elementary schools and in what ways are these instructional practices congruent with the ongoing trend of reform; and (3) what is the relationship between teachers' beliefs and their instructional practices? Basically, this study combines qualitative and quantitative methods in collecting and analyzing data. That is, teacher interviews and questionnaires were administered in order to understand teachers' beliefs about teaching and learning mathematics while observational checklists and naturalistic field observations were used to portray instructional behavior. The major findings of this study are: (1) Elementary school teachers' beliefs tend to hold with the traditional absorption learning theory and seem incongruent with the undergoing curriculum reform. (2) The instructional practices tend to reflect a traditional teacher-centered classroom and also seem incongruent with the launched reform. (3) Teachers' beliefs about teaching and learning play a vital role in shaping their instructional behavior; the situational constraints merely play a minor role. In light of the above findings, some implications such as teacher education were drawn to broaden teachers' beliefs.

The major focus of this study is to identify the effect of teacher's verbal expression on children's learning during the free-play period. The verbal expression of teachers was identified as a form of the adult's reinforcement of the child's performance during the free-play period. This reinforcement of the primary learnings which are the children's on-going activities, lead to the elaboration of learning into associate and concomitant learnings. Fifty four-year-old children in ten classrooms were selected and observed. The Child Activity Observation Form designed for 40 minute observations and adapted from Day and Weinthaler (1982) was used to collect the data. A videotape of two classrooms was used for training twelve teachers for inter-observer reliability. The researcher and the twelve teachers observed the tapes and recorded observations. The observation results were correlated with each other to identify the percentage of agreement amongst the thirteen observers. The percentage agreement for all variables was calculated for the activities observed. Findings indicate average percentage agreement amongst variables in two activities ranged between 84% and 94%. SPSS/PC+V.3.1--Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (1988) was used to analyze the data. Contingency table analysis was used, which showed the frequency distribution and crosstabulations. The analysis of the results indicate that there was no significant difference between teacher and child on "who initiated activities." The teacher initiated in 61 activities while the child initiated in 53 activities. In looking at the effect of teacher interaction on the child's achievement of elaborated learnings, results revealed significant differences in the roles of the teacher and the frequencies of both associate and concomitant learnings. Results show that teachers were observing in 43 percent of all the activities, directing in 28.9 percent, participating in 17.5 percent and absent in 10.5 percent. There was no observed associate learnings in 61.4 percent of all activities and no observed concomitant learnings in 57.0 percent of all activities.

In Somali secondary schools and in the Somali secondary science teacher education program the science curriculum is organized and taught under difficult conditions. The problem of selecting an effective program has not been adequately addressed. Science is taught directly to students as content knowledge and the way science is taught is the legacy of two educational systems, the colonial and the Koranic. The Somali secondary level schools further lack systematic curriculum development and tradition and experience in science teaching. The researcher in this study investigated through a literature review what, of all the science content that could be taught, is most essential to be taught in Somali secondary schools and in the Somali secondary science teacher education program. As a result of the literature review it was concluded this most essential science content, the "essence of science," is "science as a way of knowing." The researcher further investigated through a survey questionnaire and an in-depth interview authored by the researcher and through a Nature Of Science Scale (NOSS) developed by Kimball (1967) the perceptions of a selected group of Somali ex-science teachers who are now in North America regarding the following issues: (a) The most essential aspect of science that should be part of every secondary school science course; (b) the most essential science content for a secondary science teacher education program in an African country like Somalia; (c) the most important goals for the teaching of science at the secondary school level; (d) the most desirable consequences of science instruction at the secondary school level and in the secondary science teacher education program; and (e) the nature of science. In the study it was concluded that there was a mismatch between these perceptions of the Somali ex-science teachers and what was revealed in the literature review as the essence of science, science as a way of knowing.

This dissertation describes and analyzes how participants in one gender-informed graduate-level seminar socialized each other through joint construction of the learning environment and the learning. The research was conducted in two phases. First an ethnographic approach was used for collecting data over the course of the year in a graduate-level women's history seminar. Using ethnographic methods, I worked out an analysis of the learning environment--in particular the expectations of the professor, the motivations of participants, subject matter, and organization of space and activities. The second phase of the research used sociolinguistic methodology to arrive at an analysis of how the participants co-constructed the learning in a gender-informed collaborative classroom. Reviews of research on gender and graduate-level teaching and learning, constructivist and social constructivist learning theory, and learning processes in gender-informed classrooms formed the theoretical framework for the dissertation. Particularly relevant were studies which examined gender-balancing processes and constructivist perspectives in graduate-level learning. The study contributes to our understanding of how participants in a gender-informed seminar socialized each other and jointly constructed meanings. When the professor provided gender-informed subject matter to men and women who were willing to learn, then men and women became more conscious of the workings of gender in their own lives. In addition, the social context in the classroom became more supportive across gender lines. Through discussions alone, consciousness can be raised, but it is through collaborative work and group dialogue on individual projects that new understandings are integrated and demonstrated in written work and in social behavior.