This thesis reports research undertaken to explore a school community’s imaginings for secondary education for future generations. The research was designed to trouble the seemingly straightforward constructs of imagination and creativity, not merely to trace or audit their inclusion in the secondary curriculum, but rather to invite a secondary school community to put these constructs to work in exploring their imaginings and desires for good education 25-30 years ahead. The objectives used to structure the research involved: tracing the discourses of imagination and creativity in education curriculum policy; exploring a school community’s experiences and perceptions of secondary education; examining a school community’s imaginings for future secondary education; and exploring a school community’s desires for a future ‘curriculum for excellence’. The research was carried out during the development phase of Curriculum for Excellence (Scottish Executive 2004a) in Scotland which is explicit in its desire to provide opportunities for school communities to be/come imaginative and creative. This is not a new aspiration as imagination and creativity are familiar and enduring constructs in education. At a policy level the resurgence of interest in (imagination and) creativity is closely aligned to a desire for economic sustainability. The focus of my study is to explore how the concepts of imagination and creativity might become an impetus for the school community to think differently about good education for future generations. The study took place in a large comprehensive school community in a rural town in Scotland. Groups of participants, including pupils, parents, early-career teachers, mid-career teachers and school managers were drawn from across the school community. The method of data collection was adapted from Open Space Technology (Owen 2008) to provide an unstructured forum for participants to discuss their experiences and imaginings. A theoretical framework which offered a way of thinking differently about the data was devised from readings of concepts drawn from Deleuze (1995) and Deleuze and Guattari (2004) and used to analyse the school community’s perceptions, imaginings and desires. The findings suggest that whilst the new curriculum seems to open up a space for imagination and creativity the school community’s imaginings tend to be orientated to past experiences and/or closely aligned to the policy imaginary which appears to close down openings and opportunities for becoming. However there was a discernible desire in the school community for ‘good’ education in a fair and equitable system which appeared to be less narrowly focused on economic imperatives than that of the policy. I argue that there is a need for a new way of thinking about future education within current structures and systems which I have conceptualised as an ‘edu-imaginary interruption’. The thesis concludes with some reflections on the potential forms of such interruptions to impact on research and professional practice.

<p> The researcher taught students with autism 14 years in a public school. For years, her students were part of a social language class and a recess playgroup with typical peers. Though the therapists facilitating those groups observed progress, the researcher witnessed no real-life application outside of class.</p><p> Students with high-functioning autism had a diagnosis that included poor or lacking social skills and a language delay. Research stated that students on the autism spectrum must be taught social skills and could not be expected to 'pick up' skills through simple observation. In order for people to have relationships, go to college, obtain jobs, or marry, they must have adequate social skills.</p><p> The treatment in this study taught conversational skills using a structured <i> Conversation Game</i> (Brinton, Robinson, &amp; Fujiki, 2004) paired with the LinguiSystems workbook, <i>Spotlight on Socials Skills (adolescents): Conversations</i> (LoGiudice &amp; Johnson, 2008). The treatment took place in a self-contained setting to teach participants social skills, and then used scripts to aid the participants in generalizing the skills to unstructured settings. This study included four boys with an educational diagnosis of autism, who were at or near grade level. The treatment strived for generalization and maintenance of social skills to unstructured areas. </p><p> Data collection involved students' individual educational program goals, parent interviews and surveys, student pre-and post-interviews, worksheets, homework, the Empathy and Social-Skills pre-and post-tests, and the JobTips Assessment. The researcher took data regarding individual conversation skills, such as the number of comments, introductions, and closings, and the number of off-topic remarks, while a paraprofessional tracked data on the physical aspect of conversation, including eye contact, body language, facial expressions, and emotions.</p><p> All participants completed the LinguiSystems workbook, phase 2 by displaying appropriate verbal and physical aspects of conversation with other participants, and phase 3 by adding typical peers to the conversation. Three of the four participants were able to generalize social skills in the cafeteria and one generalized to recess. Fifty percent of the treatment population maintained their social skills. The LinguiSystems workbook paired with frequent conversational practice and feedback helped to generalize social skills for students with ASD.</p>

<p> LGBT-headed families are experiencing a changing social environment and public school environments cannot be assumed to change in synchronicity with educational policies and laws. Schools are heteronormative spaces that create an identity conflict for gay fathers because their very existence conflicts the norm that&rsquo;s prevalent in that space. Two school stakeholder groups (school counselors and gay fathers) were investigated through a qualitative complementary case study. Intersectionality and social movement theory are theoretical lenses that can help identify the overlaps of salient roles and responsibilities that each group utilize to uncover understanding of identity and advocacy stances through a family, school and community partnership context. </p>

No abstract available. / Thesis (M.Soc.Sc.)-University of Natal, Durban, 1981.

The study provides a closer look at Physical Science teachers in the rural secondary schools (of the Bafokeng area). It puts focus on the different teaching methods that they use in order to overcome the realities of teaching in an under-resourced environment. This includes different aspects that affect the teaching and learning process, both directly and indirectly. In view of the above, the study displays the necessity and roles that different stakeholders have to play. For instance, the contribution of NGOs/ companies towards the development of teachers and school learning areas. The need for parental involvement in their children's learning process has also been highlighted. In the midst of having problems with resources, and learners from disadvantaged backgrounds, this study enlightens that" by going an extra mile, teachers can make a difference in the (disadvantaged) teaching environment, as well as to the lives of learners. Teachers in this study do not use any unknown special methods to deal with their situation. They do what they feel has to be done in order to continue with what is expected of them. The study has not managed to link any direct negative impact between class size and learning, since the school which had most learners in Physical Science, seemed to have being doing well under similar conditions as others. Also highlighted, is the importance of the relationship amongst Physical Science teachers themselves. Since most of the schools in this study did not have enough materials for teaching Physical Science/Chemistry, building relations with other teachers from different schools seemed worthwhile. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of Durban-Westville, 2004.

No description available.

The study investigated the effects of rationalisation and re-deployment amongst a statistically sound sample of educators in the Province of KwaZulu Natal. It examined primarily the social and psychological effects of such phenomena in the lives and careers of educators, in a province that has gone through political , historical and ideological turbulence, violence and intimidation that had direct and indirect negative effects on educational patterns and processes. The literature review examined the various dynamics associated with these key phenomena in the educational system, including the legal frameworks and policies that shape the educational landscape, such the South African Schools Act. It needs to be said that such social and educational phenomena both shape and are shaped by the social and public policies of the democratic government that was elected from 1994 until today. These phenomena are an integral part of a series of processes that have been shaped by the various educational authorities in the new democratic dispensation, such as the various audits, new plans and strategies as well aspects of quality assurance and the like. These are inextricably linked with the dynamics unfolding in the educational terrain, especially in relation to rationalisation and re-deployment. These are situations that can be faced by all teachers, throughout the country, and it has been hoped that the internationally accepted scientific selection of the sample will permit the researcher to make inferences to similar or other populations. The study basically used two sets of data collection instruments, a structured questionnaire, and a Likert-scale type questionnaire .The questionnaires were administered to the groups of educators who were selected scientifically from the official lists of the KwaZulu Natal Department of Education. One hundred questionnaires were utilised, distributed collected and analyzed. The sample consisted of 45 males and 55 females. Amongst the sample there were educators who were both rationalised and re-deployed. The findings could be summarised as follows: • The majority of teachers felt strongly that rationalization and redeployment led to stress. • Stress created social and psychological problems for the educator, his/her immediate environment. • Redeployment and rationalisation had serious negative consequences on learners. • Most teachers reported that they were not coping with the stress associated with rationalization and redeployment as they created serious psychological and social problems. • There was no gender difference in the teachers' abilities to cope with stress associated with rationalization and redeployment. Most teachers expressed a negative attitude towards the policy of rationalization and redeployment. They felt it was a policy that created serious problems within the education system both at macro and micro level. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of Durban-Westville, 2004.

This study explores factors promoting academic resilience in learners from socio-economically disadvantaged families. It is a qualitative research located in the interpretive paradigm. Two theories namely The Resilience and Youth Development Module (RYDM) and The Asset-based Approach were used to frame the study. The objective of the study was to help schools to build academic resilience in learners especially those who are at risk of failure due to hardships they experience. A case study of a primary school in the rural area of the Quthing District in Lesotho was done. Four learners in grade six from socio-economically disadvantaged families were interviewed using semi-structured interviews combined with observations as data collection instruments. The learners were purposively selected with the assumption that they are knowledgeable about the phenomenon under investigation. The main finding from the study is hope for the future. The participants regard education as the only way out of poverty so they want to change their lives together with their families through educational excellence. The findings also revealed that support from parents, school, peers and the community play a significant role in building academic resilience in these learners. In conclusion, this study suggests collaborative efforts among stakeholders because school is not an isolated institution. Therefore there is a need for parents, teachers, peers and the community in which schools are situated to work hand in hand for the benefit of learners and the building of a stable nation. The study shows that support provided to the learners from poverty stricken families encourages them to persevere with their schooling and think positively and hope to prosper in the future. / M.Ed. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban 2014.

The purpose of the study was to investigate Chinese adults' motivational orientations for learning and the deterrents to participation in educational activities and compare the motivational factors and deterrents to participation between Chinese men and women. The participants in the study were 377 Chinese men and 202 women from fifteen adult education programs in Chengdu city, China southwest capital of Sichuan province.Roger Boshier's Education Participation Scale and Scanlan and Darkenwald's Deterrents to Participation Scale were used as data collection instruments. The mean scores of EPS and DPS items were calculated and used for examination of the extent to which they influenced Chinese adults' decisions to and not to participate in educational activities. The data from EPS and DPS were analyzed by using Chi-square statistics to examine the relationship between Chinese men and women in terms of motivational orientations for learning and deterrents to participation.The study found that the factor of Professional Advancement showed the strongest motivation which influenced Chinese adults on their decisions of participation in adult education. Followed by the factor of Social Welfare and the factor of Social Relationship. The factor of ExternalExpectation was found the least influential typology on decision of participation.The deterrent factor of Lack of Course Relevance showed the highest summed mean scores of all six dimensions. The reasons related to the institutional barrier appeared to have the strongest influence on Chinese adults' decisions not to participate in adult education. To a lesser extent, mean scores in the factors of Time Constraints and Cost indicated moderate influence on decisions not to participate. The Personal Problems was found with the lowest mean score in the Deterrents to Participation Scale.Significant differences were found between Chinese men and women in the factors of External Expectations, Escape/Stimulation and Cognitive Interest at .01 level (p.<.01), and factors of Social Relationship and Social Welfare at .05 level (p.<.05).In terms of deterrents to participation, significant differences were found between Chinese men and women in the factor of Time Constraints at .01 level, and the factors of Lack of Course Relevance, Cost and Personal Problems at .05 level. / Department of Educational Leadership

This multicase study investigated the educational, employment, and career patterns and intentional change strategies of twelve adults, ages mid-20s through early 50s, who completed a nontraditional bachelor's degree. The purposes were to examine the employment and career patterns of graduates and assess if degree completion was part of an intentional change strategy. Research was guided by the assumptions and principles of naturalistic inquiry.Most participants graduated from high school in traditional pattern, did not attend college immediately, and were first generation college graduates. Before earning degree, participants worked in varied employment, with about half employed in labor and service industry jobs for majority of employment history. Three youngest participants were establishing careers.Three to five years after completing the degree, nine of twelve participants were in executive or management positions or professional specialty occupations. Three participants were in administrative support jobs. Increases in income ranged from 10% -220%. Participants reported degree helped, but was not necessarily primary reason for career change. Degree was necessary credential to enter graduate school or qualify for a promotion for some. Participants reported degree was part of larger intentional change process.Conclusions from study: 1) Review of literature showed recent emphasis on interactionist life span development models as important to understanding adult development. 2) Study demonstrated usefulness of a bachelor's degree in terms of employment up-grading. 3) Participants described increased empowerment and self-directedness in their lives. 4) Inclusion of specific static and dynamic variables selected from the Systems Matrix Model of Adult Learning was verified. 5) Three learner-career development patterns emerged from research. a) Career Pattern - Establishing a Professional Career; b) Career Pattern - Career Change/ Development with Intervening Circumstances; c) Personal Interest in Learning Pattern. Patterns appeared similiar to Houle's goal-oriented and learning-oriented categories.Further study recommended in the areas of transitions and careers using interactionist life span model to understand adult development. Additional research with refined version of the interview guide used would be useful to investigate the tentative learner-career typology developed from study. / Department of Educational Leadership