Thesis (MEd)--University of Stellenbosch, 2007. / Bibliography. Also available via the Internet.

The purpose of this study was to examine topic-specific nature of pedagogical content knowledge (PCK). Two experienced chemistry teachers&rsquo / PCK was examined in electrochemistry and radioactivity. To capture participants&rsquo / PCK, all PCK components were studied. To get deep and rich answers to research questions asked, qualitative methodology was used. Participants were selected through purposeful sampling. Data were gathered through card-sorting activity, Content Representation (CoRe), semi-structured interviews, classroom observations, and field notes. Results revealed that participants had two types of PCK, namely, PCK A for teaching electrochemistry and PCK B for teaching radioactivity. PCK A included content-based and teacher-centered instruction, many links to other topics in chemistry and in physics. The assessment was coherent which included different types of assessment strategies used at the beginning, during, and at the end of teaching. In PCK B, it was less teacher-centered. The link to other topics was limited. Additionally, teachers used fragmented assessment and were less knowledgeable about learners&rsquo / difficulties and misconceptions in radioactivity than they were in electrochemistry. Differences between PCK A and B may be related to nature of the topics. Learners need to have much pre-requisite knowledge both from chemistry and physics to learn electrochemistry. Also, there are more concepts in electrochemistry than there are in radioactivity. It seems that when teachers have to focus on more concepts to teach, they may have a tendency to teach more-teacher centered to save time. Teacher education programs should focus on topic-specific nature of PCK and provide topic-specific training to teachers.

The purpose of this study was to examine topic-specific nature of pedagogical content knowledge (PCK). Two experienced chemistry teachers&rsquo / PCK was examined in electrochemistry and radioactivity. To capture participants&rsquo / PCK, all PCK components were studied. To get deep and rich answers to research questions asked, qualitative methodology was used. Participants were selected through purposeful sampling. Data were gathered through card-sorting activity, Content Representation (CoRe), semi-structured interviews, classroom observations, and field notes. Results revealed that participants had two types of PCK, namely, PCK A for teaching electrochemistry and PCK B for teaching radioactivity. PCK A included content-based and teacher-centered instruction, many links to other topics in chemistry and in physics. The assessment was coherent which included different types of assessment strategies used at the beginning, during, and at the end of teaching. In PCK B, it was less teacher-centered. The link to other topics was limited. Additionally, teachers used fragmented assessment and were less knowledgeable about learners&rsquo / difficulties and misconceptions in radioactivity than they were in electrochemistry. Differences between PCK A and B may be related to nature of the topics. Learners need to have much pre-requisite knowledge both from chemistry and physics to learn electrochemistry. Also, there are more concepts in electrochemistry than there are in radioactivity. It seems that when teachers have to focus on more concepts to teach, they may have a tendency to teach more-teacher centered to save time. Teacher education programs should focus on topic-specific nature of PCK and provide topic-specific training to teachers.

TITLE: The Bečovská Botanical Garden as a Space for Education of Nursery Schools Children and Pupils of Elementary Schools ABSTRACT: The thesis titled The Bečovská Botanical Garden as a Space for Education of Nursery Schools Children and Pupils of Elementary Schools focuses on the use of this place for various forms of teaching and learning. I focused on the opportunity for tours and educational programs for natural history and botany in elementary school and kindergarten in the natural environment of the beautiful West Bohemian town in the restored botanical garden. In this work was carried out a short questionnaire survey amongst teachers who have visited Bečov's botanical garden with their students. Based on the processing of the questionnaire survey, I found out what would be appropriate to add to the educational tutorials and I created a worksheet and suggested activities that could be incorporated into various educational programs. I found out what options to various naturalistic activities the Bečov's botanical garden provides, where the teachers and students who have visited it are from, whether the teachers are satisfied with its teaching programs and whether the visit helped to create or consolidate respect for nature (for plants, animals, forests, lakes, meadow) and understanding the study that...

Penser, représenter et étudier la nature a constitué un axe majeur du projet éducatif de l’école de la Troisième République. Pour comprendre les enjeux autour des façons de penser et d’éduquer à la nature, il est nécessaire de garder à l’esprit que la géographie, les sciences, l’histoire, l’agronomie et la littérature ont déversé une foule de savoirs et soulevé autant de questions, aux réponses parfois indisciplinées. L’essentiel pourtant n’est pas dans la recherche des contradictions que le discours a immanquablement générées. Non, il est à trouver dans le cap que les fondateurs ont tracé : éduquer et instruire. A notre sens, l’un des leviers pour atteindre ce double objectif a consisté à rendre l’enseignement le plus attractif possible. On s’en doute, les pédagogues n’ont pas été à court d’idées mais l’étude de la nature a plus que d’autres, servi à enchanter l’école républicaine. Pas toujours, pas partout évidemment : le succès et l’essor de l’Education nouvelle ne peuvent se comprendre si l’on oublie que beaucoup d’écoles dirigées par des maîtres consciencieux rechignèrent à rompre avec les méthodes et les contenus pédagogiques classiques. Cet arrachement à la tradition, l’Education nouvelle l’incarne parfaitement. Porté par le souffle de la rénovation pédagogique, ce mouvement progressiste a emboîté le pas des réformateurs de l’école traditionnelle pour faire de la nature le pivot de son enseignement… Au milieu des finalités de l’éducation à la nature à l’école, la dimension enchanteresse de la nature fut absolument centrale. Toute la littérature scolaire a participé à cette entreprise de fabrication d’une nature capable de dire la grandeur de la nation, apte à concurrencer les interprétations théologiques du monde et susceptible de faire oublier les malheurs du temps. Acharnée à former des petits républicains volontaires, l’école a également promu, avec la nature, des méthodes actives. Jardins, promenades, voyages, leçons sur le vif, géographie de terrain dessinent une école moderne, davantage en phase avec les besoins des enfants. C’est autour de ce double mouvement de construction de représentations : l’enchantement de l’école d’un côté, et une nature enchantée de l’autre, que nous avons articulé l’essentiel de notre réflexion. En gardant à l’esprit qu’il y a eu là un processus de fabrique d’une nature dont l’image – et non sa matérialité - se reflète encore dans la mémoire collective. / Thinking, representing and studying nature has been a major component of the educational project of Third Republic Schools. To understand the issues surrounding ways of thinking and educating people about nature, it is necessary to keep in mind that geography, science, history, agronomy and literature have brought out a wealth of knowledge and raised as many questions, sometimes with unruly answers. However, the essential thing is not in the search for the contradictions that the discourse has inevitably generated. No, it is to be found in the course that the founders have set: to educate and instruct. In our opinion, one of the levers to achieve this dual objective has been to make education as attractive as possible. As we can imagine, pedagogues were not short of ideas, but the study of nature has more than others served to enchant the republican school. Not always, not everywhere, of course: the success and development of new education cannot be understood if we forget that many schools run by conscientious teachers were reluctant to break with traditional teaching methods and content. This tearing away from tradition is perfectly embodied in the new Education. Carried by the wind of pedagogical renovation, this progressive movement followed in the footsteps of the reformers of the traditional school to make nature the pivot of its teaching... In the midst of the aims of nature education at school, the enchanting dimension of nature was absolutely central. All school literature has participated in this process of manufacturing a nature capable of expressing the greatness of the nation, capable of competing with the theological interpretations of the world and capable of making people forget the misfortunes of time. Hard at work training young volunteer Republicans, the school has also promoted, with nature, active methods. Gardens, walks, trips, lessons, geography of the field draw a modern school, more in tune with the needs of children. It is around this double movement of building representations: the enchantment of the school on the one hand, and an enchanted nature on the other, that we have organized the essential of our reflection. Bearing in mind that there has been a manufacturing process of a nature whose image - and not its materiality - is still reflected in the collective memory.

The University Forest Enterprise (UFE) is a special-purpose facility at the Technical University in Zvolen (TUZVO). The UFE is aimed at the practical education of students, scientific research associated with all forestry activities, demonstration objects, and management of the forest fund. lt is thus possible to demonstrate several aspects of forestry such as forest management, management of forest reproductive material, silviculture, logging operations, forestry constructions and ameliorations, landscape management, game management, fishery, and beekeeping. To follow these goals, 67 permanent research plots, 18 temporary plots, and 103 demonstration objects are currently maintained at the territory of the enterprise, all connected to the network of excursion and demonstration paths. The UFE manages the forest land fund (9,729 ha) according to the needs of the Technical University, and with respect to the purpose of the enterprise, 80% of the forest area managed by the enterprise is classified into the category of specialpurpose forests. The forest land fund is composed of state-owned forest land as well as forest properties of other owners. Forest plant communities ofthe UFE belang to five altitudinal vegetation zones (298-1035 m above sea level). Broadleaved tree species evidently predominate. Due to the special focus of management, the UFE uses as much as possible the concepts of the close-to-nature silviculture. Due to varied natural conditions, it is possible to apply several silvicultural systems. The application of shelterwood and selection systems with maximum utilisation of the natural potential of indigenous tree species is strongly preferred.

The thesis is following up on general characteristics of a composite classes schools in Czech Republic. The goal of the thesis is to find out, whether the physical education on composite classes schools has different specifics, due to its current lack of spacial requirements for physical education. This problematic is examined in the investigatory part of the thesis, where the results are sought with structured interviews and surveys. The outcome of said surveys is, that the spacial and material conditions for physical education on composite classes school are not a hindrance to fulfil the School educational program in physical education and are not reflected on the quality of education.

Die Arbeit begründet durch die Betrachtung empirischer Befunde die Notwendigkeit von naturwissenschaftlicher Vorschulbildung, hinterfragt und analysiert bestehendes Bildungsmaterial und entwickelt einen Umsetzungsvorschlag in Form einer Broschüre für die Bildungspraxis von Erzieher_innen. Dazu werden in dieser Arbeit Qualitätsmerkmale naturwissenschaftlicher Bildungsprozesse und naturwissenschaftlichen Bildungsmaterials herausgearbeitet und auf bestehendes Bildungsmaterial angewendet. Das Fazit diagnostiziert den bestehenden Bildungskonzepten ein naturwissenschaftliches Defizit und ein mangelndes Verständnis dafür, was naturwissenschaftliches Vorgehen ausmacht. Es stellt die Anschlussfähigkeit des erworbenen Wissens in Frage und fordert ein Umdenken in der naturwissenschaftlichen Ausbildung von Erzieher_innen.:1. Einleitung 1.1 Problembeschreibung 1.2 Fragestellung 1.3 Methodische Vorgehensweise 2. Naturwissenschaftliche Vorschulbildung in Studien, Lehr- und Bildungsplänen 2.1 Vorschulbildung in empirischen Studien 2.2 Naturwissenschaften im sächsischen Bildungsplan 2.3 Naturwissenschaft im Lehrplan der sächsischen Fachschule für Sozialwesen 3. Theoretische Betrachtung naturwissenschaftlicher Bildung 3.1 Scientific Literacy 3.2 Nature of Science 3.3 Naturwissenschaftliche Konzepte 3.4 Conceptual Change Theorie 3.5 Situationsansatz 3.6 Ziele naturwissenschaftlicher Vorschulbildung 3.7 Qualitätsdimensionen naturwissenschaftlicher Bildung in der Kita 4. Analyse und Bewertung bestehenden Materials für die Kita 4.1 Experimentierbücher 4.2 Broschüren der Stiftung Haus der kleinen Forscher 4.3 Experimentierkästen 5. Entwicklung eines didaktischen Mediums 5.1 Identifikation physikalischer Konzepte 5.1.1 Basiskonzept Materie 5.1.2 Basiskonzept Energie 5.1.3 Basiskonzept Wellen und Schwingungen 5.1.4 Basiskonzept Kräfte und Wechselwirkungen 5.2 Naturwissenschaftliche Denk- und Arbeitsweisen 5.3 Die physikalische Grundbildung der Fachkraft 5.4 Konzipierung des didaktischen Materials 6. Implementierung einer geeigneten naturwissenschaftlichen Bildungspraxis in der Kita 6.1 Gesellschaftliche Akzeptanz 6.2 Entwicklung professioneller Kompetenz 6.3 Verfügbarkeit geeigneten Materials 7. Zusammenfassung 8. Weiterführende Fragen Literaturverzeichnis Anhänge Anhang 1 – Übersicht der empirischen Studien zur vorschulischen Bildung Anhang 2 – Soziale Disparität in der PISA 2015 Studie Anhang 3 – Das Struktur-Prozessmodell nach Roux und Tietze Anhang 4 – Kriterien zur Bewertung naturwissenschaftlichen Bildungsmaterials Anhang 5 – Mathematische Herleitung des Archimedischen Prinzips Anhang 6 – Schatten in unterschiedlichen Beleuchtungssituationen Anhang 7 – Übersicht der physikalischen Realschulbildung Anhang 8 – Broschüre „Physik in der Kita“