Observation of children, based upon careful watching and listening, is a key aspect of effective early childhood pedagogy, and yet research shows that early years practitioners struggle to observe children satisfactorily and find difficulty in planning provision based upon their observations. This finding is unexpected as there is a focus upon child observation in practitioners‘ initial training. This study set out to consider this anomaly through exploring new practitioners‘ understandings and uses of child observation during their first year of employment. The study took the form of a collective case study involving ten newly qualified early years practitioners. Taking an ethnographic approach, the project used participant observation in three early years settings, combined with semi-structured interviews with new practitioners and their mentors, to collect evidence of child observation in practice. Thematic content analysis of data, supported by the use of NVivo2 software, focused upon three aspects of the research question: firstly, new practitioners‘ understandings of the nature and purpose of child observation; secondly, why and how they use it; and, thirdly, observation as an aspect of their work within early years settings. Findings indicate that new early years practitioners demonstrate both informal practice, underpinned by an ethic of caring which guides observant, responsive work with young children; and formal practice, rooted in a developmental view of childhood leading to conscientious recording of predetermined, sequential, learning outcomes. The former is an intrinsic, connected response whilst the latter results from implementation of external policy requirements. Drawing inspiration from Dewey‘s pragmatist philosophy of education and from notions of wise practice, a new dynamic and relational approach to child observation is proposed, which may unite these dichotomous modes of thought and action and so enhance early years care and education.

Some cultures regard pain as a natural part of life compared with the Western culture which believes that pain is something unnatural and that has to be eliminated. Transcultural nursing is a way to learn about and provide culturally fitting and meaningful care to people with different cultures. Tanzania suffers from a lack of qualified health workers due to an increased burden of disease and this affects the quality and supply of effective health services. It has been seen that it is common for patients to get inadequate pain treatment and this results in many different complications. The aim of the study was to describe the nursing care of patients with postoperative pain at a rural hospital in Tanzania. The study was implemented at the Kilimanjaro Christian Medical Centre in Moshi. A qualitative participating observation study with an ethnographic approach was used to collect the data. The data was analyzed by content analysis and resulted in three themes: 1. The role of the nurse, 2. Pain management, and 3. Meeting the patient. The conclusion was that the nursing care around patients with postoperative pain showed an extended collaboration between the nurses and other health care professionals as well as with the patients’ parents. The study further showed that the atmosphere around the patients was positive and calm and that the nurses assessed pain by measuring vital signs and facial expressions.

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / Esta tese apresenta o repertório de sentidos e significados que são produzidos no cotidiano da escola, a partir das práticas pedagógicas, que traduzem diferentes concepções e experiências individuais e coletivas, na perspectiva dos professores e professoras, alunos e alunas, permitindo compreender a natureza do processo de construção do currículo escolar fundado nas práticas pedagógicas e sua relação com o processo ensino-aprendizagem. Para tanto, realizamos uma pesquisa qualitativa de abordagem etnográfica com a adoção de procedimentos como a observação participante, a análise documental, a entrevista, dentre outros, para alcançar os objetivos dessa pesquisa. Os sujeitos deste estudo são professores, professoras, alunos e alunas do 7. ano de escolaridade de duas escolas que fazem parte da rede pública do Município São João de Meriti, na Baixada Fluminense Rio de Janeiro. O referencial teórico-metodológico, que subsidiou o presente estudo, tem como base a abordagem do ciclo de políticas proposto por Stephen Ball (1994) e Bowe;Ball;Gold (1992), na qual é evidenciada a importância da inter-relação dos contextos produtores do currículo escolar. Trabalhamos com o contexto da produção de textos, através da análise dos documentos emitidos no período 1999-2010 e o contexto da prática. Este trabalho tem, também, o aporte teórico de Sacristán (1998, 2000), Moreira (1990, 2001, 2003), Silva (1998, 2001, 2006, 2008), Lopes (2005, 2008a), Tura (2001, 2002, 2005, 2008, 2009, 2011), Bourdieu (1998, 1999), Foucault (1993, 2001), dentre outros. Para a análise dos dados empregamos a análise de conteúdo de Bardin (2004). O estudo revelou a complexidade do processo de construção do currículo no cotidiano escolar, tendo em vista que diferentes práticas e discursos são produzidos nos diversos contextos em que, da política proposta à política em uso (MAINARDES, 2006), emergem processos que são marcados pela recontextualização por hibridismo, de acordo com as análises de Ball (2000) e Lopes (2008a). Este estudo traz uma contribuição para os estudos no âmbito do currículo, podendo indicar possíveis caminhos para as políticas públicas na área de educação para o município de São João de Meriti. / This thesis presents the variety of feelings and meanings that are produced in the everyday life at school, through the pedagogical practices, which reflect different individual and group conceptions and experiences, from both the teacher and from the pupils perspective. This allowed the understanding of the nature of how the school curriculum is built, based on the teaching practices and their relation to the learning process. Therefore, we performed a qualitative research with an ethnographic approach by adopting procedures such as participant observation, document analysis, interviews, among others. The main subjects of this study are teachers as well as the students of the 7th school grade, from two public schools from the city of Sao Joao de Meriti, in the Baixada Fluminense Region - Rio de Janeiro. The theoretical and methodological framework that supported this study is based on the policy cycle approach proposed by Stephen Ball (1994), which the importance of the interrelationship of the school curriculum builders contexts. We worked with the context of writing texts, through the analysis of documents issued in the period between the years 1999-2010, as well as with context of practice. This work has also the theoretical background of Sacristán (1998, 2000), Moreira (1990, 2001, 2003), Silva (1998, 2001, 2006, 2008), Lopes (2005, 2008a), Tura (2001, 2002, 2005, 2008, 2009, 2011), Bourdieu (1998, 1999), Foucault (1993, 2001), among others. For the data analysis, we employed content analysis approach from Bardin (2004). As outcome, the study showed the complexity of the process of creating a school curriculum in the everyday school life, bearing in mind that different practices and speeches are produced in the various contexts, in which processes, which are noticeable by their re-contextualization through hybridity, according to the analysis of Ball (2000) and Lopes (2008), emerge between the "proposed policy" and the "employed policy (MAINARDES, 2006). This study makes a contribution for studies within the school curriculum landscape, which may indicate potential directions for public policies in the education area for the Sao Joao de Meriti city.

This ethnographic case study explored the insights and experiences of a small selection of working graduates from Dubai Women's College. Based on a literature review and a preliminary study, the following themes were identified and employed as stimuli for discussion: the balance between work and family responsibilities, gender issues in the workplace, issues of power relationships for women, coping with restrictions in an Arabic Islamic environment, reasons for work, and sources of influence and satisfaction. The research utilized feminist post-structural theory to collect the data and then analyze and interpret the comments made by the women. Self-reflexivity and transparency of the positionality of the researcher were critical in this research that relied on an unstructured personal interview approach. The research resulted in a rich description of the thoughts and concerns of five diverse women. Through discourse analysis, the dominant socio-cultural discourses in the areas of gender, marriage, kinship, ethnicity, meritocracy, materialism and religion that women interact with in this cultural environment were identified. The extent to which the women take up, disrupt and challenge these discourses was also explored with a view to suggest ways to 'better' women's lives. Implications of this study include an agenda for increased emancipation of women by greater freedom of choice through self awareness and the development of potential strategies to support empowerment.

<p>The purpose of this study is to find out what working procedures are used in Nepalese schools. We have also investegated teachers'views on how schools are organised and how the school system is structured in Nepal. Furthermore, we studied what kind of National Curriculum and other official documents that existed in Nepal, to support teachers when planning their teaching. In our study we used an ethnographic approach. </p><p>The literature review and our results show that the teachers in Nepal face several challenges in their profession. We believe that the central power of the government can in a future development be discussed in terms of de-centralisation of the school system. If so, it could be problematised how and what the teachers should teach and how the pupils'final School Leaving Certificate exam should look like.</p>

The purpose of this study is to find out what working procedures are used in Nepalese schools. We have also investegated teachers'views on how schools are organised and how the school system is structured in Nepal. Furthermore, we studied what kind of National Curriculum and other official documents that existed in Nepal, to support teachers when planning their teaching. In our study we used an ethnographic approach. The literature review and our results show that the teachers in Nepal face several challenges in their profession. We believe that the central power of the government can in a future development be discussed in terms of de-centralisation of the school system. If so, it could be problematised how and what the teachers should teach and how the pupils'final School Leaving Certificate exam should look like.

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / Esta tese apresenta o repertório de sentidos e significados que são produzidos no cotidiano da escola, a partir das práticas pedagógicas, que traduzem diferentes concepções e experiências individuais e coletivas, na perspectiva dos professores e professoras, alunos e alunas, permitindo compreender a natureza do processo de construção do currículo escolar fundado nas práticas pedagógicas e sua relação com o processo ensino-aprendizagem. Para tanto, realizamos uma pesquisa qualitativa de abordagem etnográfica com a adoção de procedimentos como a observação participante, a análise documental, a entrevista, dentre outros, para alcançar os objetivos dessa pesquisa. Os sujeitos deste estudo são professores, professoras, alunos e alunas do 7. ano de escolaridade de duas escolas que fazem parte da rede pública do Município São João de Meriti, na Baixada Fluminense Rio de Janeiro. O referencial teórico-metodológico, que subsidiou o presente estudo, tem como base a abordagem do ciclo de políticas proposto por Stephen Ball (1994) e Bowe;Ball;Gold (1992), na qual é evidenciada a importância da inter-relação dos contextos produtores do currículo escolar. Trabalhamos com o contexto da produção de textos, através da análise dos documentos emitidos no período 1999-2010 e o contexto da prática. Este trabalho tem, também, o aporte teórico de Sacristán (1998, 2000), Moreira (1990, 2001, 2003), Silva (1998, 2001, 2006, 2008), Lopes (2005, 2008a), Tura (2001, 2002, 2005, 2008, 2009, 2011), Bourdieu (1998, 1999), Foucault (1993, 2001), dentre outros. Para a análise dos dados empregamos a análise de conteúdo de Bardin (2004). O estudo revelou a complexidade do processo de construção do currículo no cotidiano escolar, tendo em vista que diferentes práticas e discursos são produzidos nos diversos contextos em que, da política proposta à política em uso (MAINARDES, 2006), emergem processos que são marcados pela recontextualização por hibridismo, de acordo com as análises de Ball (2000) e Lopes (2008a). Este estudo traz uma contribuição para os estudos no âmbito do currículo, podendo indicar possíveis caminhos para as políticas públicas na área de educação para o município de São João de Meriti. / This thesis presents the variety of feelings and meanings that are produced in the everyday life at school, through the pedagogical practices, which reflect different individual and group conceptions and experiences, from both the teacher and from the pupils perspective. This allowed the understanding of the nature of how the school curriculum is built, based on the teaching practices and their relation to the learning process. Therefore, we performed a qualitative research with an ethnographic approach by adopting procedures such as participant observation, document analysis, interviews, among others. The main subjects of this study are teachers as well as the students of the 7th school grade, from two public schools from the city of Sao Joao de Meriti, in the Baixada Fluminense Region - Rio de Janeiro. The theoretical and methodological framework that supported this study is based on the policy cycle approach proposed by Stephen Ball (1994), which the importance of the interrelationship of the school curriculum builders contexts. We worked with the context of writing texts, through the analysis of documents issued in the period between the years 1999-2010, as well as with context of practice. This work has also the theoretical background of Sacristán (1998, 2000), Moreira (1990, 2001, 2003), Silva (1998, 2001, 2006, 2008), Lopes (2005, 2008a), Tura (2001, 2002, 2005, 2008, 2009, 2011), Bourdieu (1998, 1999), Foucault (1993, 2001), among others. For the data analysis, we employed content analysis approach from Bardin (2004). As outcome, the study showed the complexity of the process of creating a school curriculum in the everyday school life, bearing in mind that different practices and speeches are produced in the various contexts, in which processes, which are noticeable by their re-contextualization through hybridity, according to the analysis of Ball (2000) and Lopes (2008), emerge between the "proposed policy" and the "employed policy (MAINARDES, 2006). This study makes a contribution for studies within the school curriculum landscape, which may indicate potential directions for public policies in the education area for the Sao Joao de Meriti city.

La Cité des Métiers propose aux élèves de l’établissement de Cadenazzo-Vira Gambarogno, un collège populaire dans la partie italienne de la Suisse, une série de situations d’apprentissage liées à l’orientation scolaire et professionnelle. Tout au long des quatre années du collège, unique, comme en France, les élèves sont amenés à se confronter avec des personnalités issues du monde du travail, à visiter des entreprises et des écoles professionnelles, à réaliser une brève recherche en salle d’informatique, à regarder un long-métrage et à participer à un colloque sur le travail, ou encore, à suivre un cours facultatif d’initiation au lexique et au langage économiques.Cette recherche étudie ce projet pédagogique comme un point focal, au sens de centre vers lequel convergent un ensemble de complexes processus sociaux, reliés à la dynamique de construction du collège unique. Porteuse d’une effective mixité sociale, celle-ci ne peut se penser qu’en relation étroite avec un monde du travail en mutation, à la recherche de nouveaux équilibres. Ce travail est issu d’une action sociale décennale, entre 2003/2004 et 2013/2014, devenue ensuite une recherche ethnographique effectuée par l’un des animateurs, autour de trente entretiens semi-directifs, entièrement retranscrits et traduits en français, avec des professionnels du collège, des parents d’élèves, des personnalités invitées et des élèves ayant animé le projet. Ces données sont complétées par d’autres, issues en particulier de documents d’archives disponibles, de rapports de bilan réaliséspar les élèves après des visites et d’articles publiés dans un hebdomadaire culturel, permettant d’analyser une expérience par la construction d’une étude de cas.La première partie de cette étude se focalise sur le rapport entre la collaboration et la conflictualité dans le processus d’élaboration de la Cité des Métiers. Une analyse stratégique de la minorité active, met en évidence une structure des relations de pouvoir centrée autour d’un jeu triangulaire entre acteurs sociaux, conduisant à une oscillation continue entre une dynamique d’innovation autonome, d’innovation hétéronome et de ralentissement réflexif. La deuxième partie analyse le rôle del’ingénierie pédagogique dans l’efficacité de son déroulement quotidien. Une analyse de désirabilité des situations d’apprentissage mises en place, fait ressortir une participation responsable différenciée des élèves aux apprentissages, favorisant la succession de la séquence vocationnelle et la construction d’une compétence transitionnelle, en mesure de guider les transitions de vie de ces individus en devenir. La troisième partie, enfin, étudie les répercussions sur la forme identitaire des élèves. Une analyse structurale des récits de vie des élèves les plus engagés, esquisse une transformation identitaire vers l’apparition d’un esprit de performance, aux déclinaisons individualisées, qui renforce la maîtrise des transitions de vie.Cette démarche plurielle met en évidence les contours d’une brèche vers la réalisation d’un collège effectivement unique, puisque équitable, résultat d’un fragile équilibre sans cesse renouvelé entre la liberté et l’égalité, tout d’abord au niveau du curriculum caché. Ce qui fait surgir une individualité éveillée, fruit potentiel de l’idéal-type émergent de l’enseignant démocratique. Simultanément, ces contours font apparaître les limites de ce processus de rajeunissement interne de l’école républicaine, à savoir la faiblesse de l’élaboration d’une vision du monde social du corps enseignant, vecteur de cette dynamique, et de l’incontournable prolongement de l’équité de l’univers scolaire vers le monde du travail, dans le cadre de l’émergence d’une société ouverte. / The City of Jobs organizes a series of learning situations related to educational and vocational guidance for students of the establishment of Cadenazzo-Vira Gambarogno, a popular middle school in the Italian part of Switzerland. Throughout the four years of middle school, unique, as in France, pupils are invited to confront with personalities from the world of work, to visit companies and professional schools, to carry out a brief research in the computer room, to watch a feature film andto participate in a symposium on the evolution of work, or, to take an optional course in initiation into lexicon and economic language.Research studies this pedagogical project as a focal point, that is a center towards which converge a set of complex social processes, related to the building dynamics of the unique middle school. Carrying an effective social diversity, this one can merely be thought of in close relation with a changing world of work, in search of new balances. This work comes from a decennial social action, between 2003/2004 and 2013/2014, which became an ethnographic research carried out by one of theanimators, around thirty semi-structured interviews, fully transcribed and translated into French, with middle school professionals, pupils’ parents, invited personalities and students who animated the project. These data are supplemented by others, especially from available archival documents, assessment reports made by students after visits and articles published in a cultural weekly magazine, allowing the analysis of an experience through the construction of a case study.The first part of this study focuses on the relationship between collaboration and conflictuality in the elaboration process of the City of Jobs. A strategic analysis of the active minority highlights a structure of power relations centered around a triangular game between social actors, leading to a continuous oscillation between a dynamic of autonomous innovation, of heterogeneous innovation and reflexive slowdown. The second part analyzes the role of educational engineering in the efficiency of its daily progress. A desirability analysis of the implemented learning situations shows a differentiated responsible participation of students in learning, favouring the succession of the vocational sequence and the construction of a transitional competence, able to guide the transitions of life of these individualities under construction. The third part, finally, examines the repercussionson the identity form of the students. A structural analysis of the life stories of the most engaged students sketches an identity transformation which shows the appearance of a spirit of performance, with individualized variations, which reinforces the control of life transitions.This plural approach brings out the contours of a breach towards the realization of a truly unique middle school, because equitable, result of a fragile balance constantly renewed between freedom and equality, first of all at the level of the hidden curriculum. What makes awakened individuality arise, potential fruit of the emerging ideal-type of the democratic teacher. Simultaneously, these contours reveal the limits of this process of internal rejuvenation of the republican school, namely theweakness of the elaboration of a vision of the social world of the teaching staff, vector of this dynamic, and the unavoidable extension of the equity of the school universe to the world of work, within the framework of the emergence of an open society.

Sibling caretaking, although common across time and cultures, has not been well researched from the carer’s point of view. In Nicaragua, ranked as one of the poorest countries in the Americas, sibling caretaking is common. The country’s historical background and its state of chronic poverty, widespread unemployment, loose family structures, and migration and mobility makes of the old practise of shared management child care a necessity. Households headed by sing¬le mothers constitute a particular Nica¬raguan charact¬eristic. Many children are expected to help in their own families and care for their siblings and other children living in their households. In its broadest sense sibling caretaking is a public health concern, and we conducted this study to widen the understanding of the phenomenon as it is represented in a setting undergoing a rapid social transition. The main objectives were to identify, describe and analyse the life situation of sibling caretakers in poor areas in León, Nicaragua, with focus on how they perceived it themselves. A combined qualitative and quantitative methodological design was used, mainly applying an ethnographic approach. A further ambition was to explore involvement of children in a participatory research process in accordance with the ‘Convention on the Rights of the Child’. The overall emotion expressed among the caretakers was pride, even if their situation often was characterized by stress and coping problems. They perceived their work as important for their families and they appreciated to fend for their siblings. Household work and nurturing of siblings were shaping the future lives of the caretakers and constituted part of their socialization. Even if many of these children achieve essential life skills as caretakers, they are at risk of falling behind as they grow older. Their long-term personal development is likely to be hampered by the obligations they have as caretakers. The carers' awareness of missing out on education was the most problematic issue for them. From a societal point of view, caretaking has negative consequences. The individual child is marginalised with limited access to basic education, contributing to overall low educational levels in Nicaragua. While the structuring conditions leading to sibling caretaking may be difficult to change, awareness of how these can affect children might make way for improvements in terms of access to school education and support from the society. The knowledge gained from this study should be further utilised to plan for interventions that take children’s perspectives into consideration.

Health differs among people and education about health is of value to maintain and develop health. In a developing country as Fiji may the definition of health be of different holistic character, compared to industrial countries. It is important to clarify that no view of health is more right or wrong, but has been adapted to the existing conditions and culture within the arena. Knowledge about how to teach about health in a developing country is needed, where health is not as prioritized as other factors, for example to have an income. The aim of this study is to identify health as a concept and identify what strategies that are being used by the teachers to implement health education in Fiji. The research questions were used as contribution to the study’s aim to help the researchers understand how the participants of the study define health as a concept and investigate how pedagogical strategies are being used and what challenges they experience with their teaching. The study has an ethnographic approach with interviews and observations, which are methods used in a qualitative research. The results show there is lots of knowledge about certain themes within health among the teachers, but limited knowledge about health from a holistic perspective. The main conclusion regarding the study’s aim is that there are limited knowledge on how to conduct health education at the two participating schools in Fiji. The definition of health among the interviewed teachers were equivalent and with limited understanding of the concept.