published_or_final_version / Education / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

published_or_final_version / Education / Master / Master of Education

published_or_final_version / abstract / Education / Master / Master of Education

Hazards are an integral part of people-environment relationships. The impact of hazards locally and globally has become increasinglymore severe. particularly in the previous two decades. This is largely as a result of unwise human intervention in natural systems. The study of hazards at secondary school level affords valuable opportunities for learning about people-environment issues. This in turn, can promote a greater awareness of environmental problems. One of the most important current aims of Geographical Education is the development of critical thinking skills in pupils. Such skills are vital for equipping pupils with the necessary tools to understand and participate in solving the world's increasing human and environmental problems. The development of a critical faculty in pupils is best achieved by the use of learner-based participatory teaching strategies where pupils are involved in problem solving activities. Research has shown that British and South African Geography curricula reflect current thinking in Geographical education and learning theory. The 1992 Junior Secondary Geography Syllabus in line with these trends. includes a section for study on hazards. Hazards are presented primarily as case studies in modern Geographical texts. which is seen as one of the most effective ways of teaching hazards. Research however suggests that South African textbooks have certain shortcomings. notwithstanding the importance placed on textbooks by teachers in this country. This study investigated the extent to which case study teaching materials on hazards are optimising opportunities available for effective learning within an Environmental Paradigm. An evaluation methodology, which is believed to have value for use by other researchers, was developed to suit the specific requirements of the study. The study findings reveal a poor realisation of the current aims of Geographical Education and learning theory, regarding the South African teaching materials. Recommendations are made improvements in the development and use of local case teaching materials. Guidelines for the development of for study local materials are provided from case studies in British texts and from methods developed by the researcher.

M.Ed. / The research question which is addressed in this study is the lack of functional reading and writing skills in a content subject such as Geography. The research was conducted with the assumption that most black students are lacking in the advanced literacy skills to learn Geography successfully. The rationale for the research is that if our education system wishes to improve learning skills and especially literacy amongst most black students the curriculum should put into practice effective reading and writing programmes in the teacher training colleges so that these skills are taught from the pre-primary schools up to matric as an on-going activity. The findings show that there is a large amount of rote learning without understanding of the learning content in the research sample, that they have limited vocabulary that contributes to poor self-expression and that some teachers are not well trained in the teaching of reading and writing skills across the curriculum.

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Please read the abstract in the section, 00front, of this document / Thesis (DPhil)--University of Pretoria, 2006. / Humanities Education / DPhil / Unrestricted

Geography education is undergoing change in K-12 education due in part to the introduction of geospatial technologies, including geographic information systems (GIS). Although active engagement in GIS mapping would seem to enhance students’ spatial thinking, little is known about the mapping strategies that students employ or about changes in their geographic knowledge that would result. This study, set in a high school Advanced Placement human geography class, sought to contribute to these areas of inquiry. Participants performed a web-based GIS task focused on global population and migration. Attention in the study was on (a) the strategies students employed when investigating geographic phenomena using GIS, (b) changes in their cognitive maps, as assessed through sketch maps, resulting from the activity, (c) the relationship between GIS maps and sketch maps, and (d) the ways in which a subset of students serving as case studies explained the nature of their mapping. The study employed screen-captures, video-recordings, observations, pre- and post-study sketch maps, and interviews. Analyses of the GIS process revealed that, in creating their maps, the students used a number of strategies, which included searching, layering, removing layers of data, adjusting transparency, editing, and noting. Although searching and layering were employed by all students, there was variability across students in use of the other strategies. With respect to changes in their spatial thinking, analyses of the sketch maps showed increases in elaboration and accuracy in terms of migration patterns. When GIS maps were compared to sketch maps, analyses showed relations for many students. The six students who served as case studies revealed major connections between personal interests and the reasoning employed in mapping. They also described their entry points into the process. The study shows how real-time data collection, including screen captures, as well as more static measures, specifically sketch maps, can provide insights into the spatial thinking of students while using GIS. It provides some support to educational approaches to geography in which students become creators of maps, not simply users of maps, and suggests that, through their own mapping process, students expand their cognitive maps and enhance their spatial thinking.

Education systems are currently undergoing transformational changes throughout the world and one of these changes is a shift from a philosophy of positivist paradigm to constructivist paradigm of teaching. Accordingly, constructivists claim children actively construct their knowledge rather than absorb information spoken to them by teachers. Therefore, the constructivist teaching of Geography places emphasis on the fact that learners should think more, understand and responsible for their own learning. This study thus focused on the practice of constructivist methods in the teaching of Geography at preparatory secondary schools of Ethiopia. Geography is colourful and an outdoor oriented subject in which learners could get good opportunities to construct their knowledge through various in-and-out of school activities. Thus, constructivist methods are useful for Geography learners to develop their intellectual capacity for life-long learning and for generic skills such as critical thinking, information processing, problem solving, decision-making, etc. Therefore, the main purpose of this study was to investigate the merits and reasons for teacher dominance in the pedagogy of Geography and to suggest learner-centered teaching strategies in the context of constructivist principles on learners’ learning activities to liberate them from passive learning pedagogy. The study was confined to six Higher Education Preparatory Secondary Schools out of 20 preparatory schools of the South Wollo Administrative Zone of Amhara state of Ethiopia. It employed mixed-method approaches (qual-quant) and descriptive survey design. The target population for this study was 1053 Social Science learners and 12 Geography departmental heads and teachers. Among 1053 learners 199 learners were sampled through random sampling technique. But all Geography teachers and departmental heads were taken as the main participants through purposive sampling techniques. Semi-structured interviews, observation, documents and questionnaire were the main data collection instruments for the study. Data that were collected through interviews, observation and open-ended questionnaire were analysed inductively using narrations and descriptions through words, phrases and statements, whereas the data collected from documents were organised in the form of tables and analysed via percentage and mean. However, data that were collected through close-ended questionnaires were edited, coded, classified, tabulated and organised in the form of tables havebeen analysed through frequency, percentage and mean via SPSS software. Based on the analysed data, findings were depicted. The findings of the study revealed that Geography is a unique discipline and its syllabus was prepared in line with the country’s education policy which encourages constructivist approaches of teaching. However, majority of teachers frequently practice traditional teaching methods. Moreover, the study also identified that lack of teachers’ professional training about the practice of a variety of learner-centered methods and continuous assessment techniques, lack of experience about learner-centered teaching methods both on the part of teachers and learners, low interest and commitment on the part of teachers, teachers’ failure to utilise teaching materials, placing of less competent learners in the Social Science stream, learners’ low interest to learn and incapability to learn through learner-centered methods, learners’ low engagement in the teaching activities, learners’ disturbance, shortage of time, absence of plasma TV transmission and shortage of resources such as school facilities, instructional media, reference books, Geography room, department room, pedagogical center, lounge and scarcity of budget were considerable hindrances on the implementation of Geography syllabus through the constructivist approaches of teaching methods. Based on the findings of the study, recommendations were made to the concerned bodies to alleviate the hindrances and to encourage the practice of constructivist teaching methods and making the learners free from teachers’ dependency. / Curriculum and Instructional Studies / D. Ed. (Curriculum Studies)

published_or_final_version / abstract / Geography / Master / Master of Geographic Information System