This thesis addresses the relevance of craft disciplines in our present-day world, one that is driven largely by information technology. It is an examination of the contemporary value, benefits and importance of making objects 'by hand' from the perspective of both the craftsperson and the people who take pleasure in craft objects. In the thesis, craft is interlinked with an issue of time, more precisely, with the need for slowing down in order to live and work at a variety of speeds or rhythms. The impact of this on our understanding of learning, in the formal education system and beyond, is central. / The thesis draws on a variety of sources from contemporary education and economic theories to craft philosophies of the past and issues relating to the current international Slow movements which urge us to enjoy the sensual, visual and tactile pleasures of life.

No description available.

The purpose of this study is to find and evaluate a course in crafts in a small rural school with the hope that it may be of some value to teachers in rural districts, and that it may help provide a more general education for the rural school child.

The purpose of this study is to find the function of handicrafts in life adjustment education. It should also help in determining sound methods of organizing and teaching handicrafts.

The purpose of this study is to find and evaluate a course in crafts in a small rural school with the hope that it may be of some value to teachers in rural districts, and that it may help provide a more general education for the rural school child. The results of an interest questionnaire, projects suggested by the students, projects made, and direct observations will be the means used in determining the needs and interests of the Waneta School students. A comparison of suggested projects and of projects made by the students, and the results of an evaluation questionnaire and a rating sheet will be used in evaluating the course in terms of the students' needs and interests.

This is a study of the curriculum identity of Icelandic craft teachers. The study is based on life history interviews with 42 teachers born between 1913 and 1960. The interviews traced a life long relationship with the subject they chose to teach. Particular attention was paid to how the teachers define their subject and how they identify with it. The information gathered was analyzed with reference to the development of crafts as school subjects in Iceland. The study describes in context the relationship that teachers have with their subjects and attempts to explain it in terms of gender and class. The curriculum identity of the teacher of these subjects is crucial as the subjects are not defined by external means such as a prescriptive formal curriculum or centralized assessment. Each teacher is therefore able to construct a personal curriculum. The curriculum identity of craft teachers is defined by gender and class. The Icelandic school system includes two craft subjects; textiles formerly know as girls' craft, and wood and metalwork, formerly known as boys' craft. In the late seventies the gender segregation was abolished by a policy of equal access to education. Still the subjects retain a gendered definition. This study details the strength of gendered traditions and the complex effects of gender equity policies. Class refers here to the hierarchy of academic and vocational, or intellectual/manual pursuits. Western school systems operate on a dichotomy between mind and matter, where association with matter and the manual is less prestigious. The life histories of craft teachers manifest the effects, as the teachers perceive themselves as a low status group within the school system. The composite life histories of this group of craft teachers outline the history of the school subjects in Iceland, a history that has not been documented. The main contribution of the study is to the definition of curriculum identity, the way in which teachers define themselves and are defined by the subjects they teach. The evidence given by these teachers suggests that teachers tend to see their curriculum identity as deeply rooted in their personal history, even in their family history.

This is a study of the curriculum identity of Icelandic craft teachers. The study is based on life history interviews with 42 teachers born between 1913 and 1960. The interviews traced a life long relationship with the subject they chose to teach. Particular attention was paid to how the teachers define their subject and how they identify with it. The information gathered was analyzed with reference to the development of crafts as school subjects in Iceland. The study describes in context the relationship that teachers have with their subjects and attempts to explain it in terms of gender and class. The curriculum identity of the teacher of these subjects is crucial as the subjects are not defined by external means such as a prescriptive formal curriculum or centralized assessment. Each teacher is therefore able to construct a personal curriculum. The curriculum identity of craft teachers is defined by gender and class. The Icelandic school system includes two craft subjects; textiles formerly know as girls' craft, and wood and metalwork, formerly known as boys' craft. In the late seventies the gender segregation was abolished by a policy of equal access to education. Still the subjects retain a gendered definition. This study details the strength of gendered traditions and the complex effects of gender equity policies. Class refers here to the hierarchy of academic and vocational, or intellectual/manual pursuits. Western school systems operate on a dichotomy between mind and matter, where association with matter and the manual is less prestigious. The life histories of craft teachers manifest the effects, as the teachers perceive themselves as a low status group within the school system. The composite life histories of this group of craft teachers outline the history of the school subjects in Iceland, a history that has not been documented. The main contribution of the study is to the definition of curriculum identity, the way in which teachers define themselves and are defined by the subjects they teach. The evidence given by these teachers suggests that teachers tend to see their curriculum identity as deeply rooted in their personal history, even in their family history. / Education, Faculty of / Curriculum and Pedagogy (EDCP), Department of / Graduate

The problem of this study is to determine to what extent crafts are being taught in the junior high schools, and the type and extent of training of those teachers teaching crafts in the junior high schools of Texas.

No description available.

The Sami people have struggled for centuries to maintain their culture in spite of pressures against it from colonialism. The formal education systems of Norway and Finland have acted in discord with Sami decision-making since their inception. In response to this lack of decision-making power, there is a dynamic internal process at work; Sami people have begun to take control of their own schooling. / This thesis qualitatively examines the processes of curriculum development and implementation for wood handicraft programs at the Sami colleges in Guovdageaidnu, Norway and in Anar, Finland, and details the most significant educational and political factors involved in the transmission and production of indigenous knowledge associated with Sami handicraft. Factors associated with the teaching of Sami handicraft in the form of increasing commercialization, generalization and mechanization in formal duodji education and the stereotyping of Sami cultural imagery pose potential risks to appropriate transfer of Sami cultural knowledge. This thesis will show that the teaching of Sami handicraft (duodji) is an educational and political tool that helps develop and define modern Sami culture. Accordingly, attempts by the Sami colleges to incorporate greater indigenous knowledge have resulted in the implementation of modern indigenous curriculum that promotes cultural knowledge through the teaching of Sami handicraft.