This dissertation is a contribution to understanding the relationship between schooling and gender inequality. The study explores how gender as a social relation is organized and embedded in the daily experiences of classroom life and in the discourses of people who dwell there. The study deals with how classroom encounters contribute to the reproduction or transformation of gender categories and how students' and teachers' discursive practices build and support patriarchal structures. The study is grounded in critical education theory, feminist theory, and ethnographic research. The specific site for the study is the knowledge area described as the Practical Arts, namely home economics and technical studies. The research is limited to a single Grade 8, coeducational, home economics and technical studies program in an inner-city, multi-ethnic, secondary school in western Canada. Evidence is based on participant observation of classrooms, for one school year, with one group of students as they proceed through a combined home economics and technical studies program. Evidence is also obtained through interviews with students and teachers. The study illustrates how classroom practices support the patriarchal structures of division of labour, violence against women, and sexuality. The study shows how the students' and teachers' discursive practices produce girls and women, and less powerful boys, in subordinate positions and as objects of regulation. As well, students' previous experiences in domestic and technical work, and classroom discourse, produce and support the division of labour. The study shows how the conditions of teachers' work, their authoritarian, product oriented approach, and their powerful, institutional discourses grounded in biological and psychological development and equality of educational opportunity, prevent them from challenging patriarchal structures. Although the study shows how students and teachers are actively engaged in the production rather than the transformation of traditional gender relations, it also shows how patriarchy is incomplete: there were divisions within gender categories and there were many contradictions. The study shows how power relations are not static - they are constantly in process of negotiation, thereby opening possibilities for social change.

M.Ed. (Curriculum Science) / The demands for the renewal of education in South Africa and the poor performance of black learners in the Standerd 10 final examination in Home Economics gave rise to the empirical study on the needs of black learners. These needs were used as a co-determinant for the design of a future subject curriculum. A literature study was conducted on curriculum designs and design models which resulted in a recommended design model. The qualitative research paradigm was used for the empirical study. Data were collected through interviews supplemented by document-analysis. The research focused on the needs of the learners concerning: The relevance of the subject, i.e to what extent the subject is related to the learners' everyday life experiences and interest. The subject content as it could be applied in the daily lives of learners as well as the future world of work. Teaching methods, which include methods that contribute towards maximum learning and which accomodate learners' differences. Evaluation as an integral part of the implementation of the curriculum. Identified learner needs were taken into consideration in compiling guidelines on the different elements of a future curriculum design for Home Economics where both the learners' needs and the requirements of the subject will be accomodated.

[From Introduction]. The study involved student teachers and teacher educators providing me with information concerning their perception and understanding of the BETD broad curriculum and needlework and clothing syllabus. The above mentioned are the people who are involved in teacher education thus I found it relevant to have their opinions and understanding of the documents. The contextual analysis has engaged me in exploring a possible area of research specialisation for the two years during the course of studies with Rhodes University; this will serve as an introduction to the particular research to be done through the course of my studies. The focus of this report includes the following: • A critical analysis of (BETD) needlework and clothing syllabus in relation to the BETD broad curriculum; • A socio-historic and economic analysis of the context for which the syllabus has been designed; • An analysis of the learners for whom the syllabus is designed. In this case students provided their autobiography; • An analysis ofthe learning environment in which the syllabus operates; the physical structure and resources. Together with the critical analysis of the curriculum a small scale survey intending to find out the following information from the student teachers and teacher educators was conducted. • The extent to which the broad curriculum differs from the previous teacher education on issues related to democracy, quality, access, cultural bias, racial discrimination and classes (level of economic status); • How the needlework and clothing syllabus addresses the needs of student teachers; • Whether the needlework and clothing syllabus has enough content; • The challenges facing teacher education and how they can be addressed; • Whether the needlework and clothing syllabus is learner-centred; • Whether the syllabus is gender oriented or biased. This evaluation framework provides a foundation for later investigation

This dissertation is a contribution to understanding the relationship between schooling and gender inequality. The study explores how gender as a social relation is organized and embedded in the daily experiences of classroom life and in the discourses of people who dwell there. The study deals with how classroom encounters contribute to the reproduction or transformation of gender categories and how students' and teachers' discursive practices build and support patriarchal structures. The study is grounded in critical education theory, feminist theory, and ethnographic research. The specific site for the study is the knowledge area described as the Practical Arts, namely home economics and technical studies. The research is limited to a single Grade 8, coeducational, home economics and technical studies program in an inner-city, multi-ethnic, secondary school in western Canada. Evidence is based on participant observation of classrooms, for one school year, with one group of students as they proceed through a combined home economics and technical studies program. Evidence is also obtained through interviews with students and teachers. The study illustrates how classroom practices support the patriarchal structures of division of labour, violence against women, and sexuality. The study shows how the students' and teachers' discursive practices produce girls and women, and less powerful boys, in subordinate positions and as objects of regulation. As well, students' previous experiences in domestic and technical work, and classroom discourse, produce and support the division of labour. The study shows how the conditions of teachers' work, their authoritarian, product oriented approach, and their powerful, institutional discourses grounded in biological and psychological development and equality of educational opportunity, prevent them from challenging patriarchal structures. Although the study shows how students and teachers are actively engaged in the production rather than the transformation of traditional gender relations, it also shows how patriarchy is incomplete: there were divisions within gender categories and there were many contradictions. The study shows how power relations are not static - they are constantly in process of negotiation, thereby opening possibilities for social change. / Education, Faculty of / Curriculum and Pedagogy (EDCP), Department of / Graduate

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of 'Foodstyles: Perspectives on Food for People' (Foodstyles), on the teaching practices of secondary Home Economics educators in British Columbia. Foodstyles is a nutrition innovation intended for use in conjunction with the Foods and Nutrition section of the provincial Home Economics Curriculum. The design of the study was developed from curriculum evaluation literature. Research questions were derived from the concerns of program developers, workshop leaders and teachers. The questions investigated how teachers use Foodstyles, if teachers who use the program accept its rationale, what factors influence use of the program and in what ways Foodstyles is of value in nutrition education practice. Patterns of teacher use of Foodstyles were selected as the criteria for judging the impact of the innovation. Data were obtained by questionnaires and interviews. Questionnaires were mailed to teachers who had attended a Foodstyles workshop and who were teaching Home Economics in school districts that agreed to participate in the study. Of the 113 teachers who responded (51.8 percent), 75 taught Foods and Nutrition during 1980-81 and were included in the analyses. A sample of ten respondents were interviewed to obtain descriptions of their use of Foodstyles. Results of the analyses of questionnaire data together with descriptions from the interviews were used to construct "Profiles of Teacher Use of Foodstyles" for high, moderate and low-users. A panel of nutrition education experts used these three profiles to judge the value of the innovation. Results of the study indicated that teachers used individual activities from Foodstyles that were congruent with their own objectives. They most frequently used junior-level activities that were presented at workshops, were related to factors influencing food choice and were ready for immediate classroom use. Correlational analysis indicated a significant positive relationship between use of Foodstyles activities and selection of teaching strategies which reflect acceptance of the Foodstyles rationale. During interviews, high-users (18.7 percent) reported that they selected activities from Foodstyles to encourage students to choose food patterns consistent with their needs and lifestyles. High-users included Foodstyles in lessons as intended by program developers and as the panel believed it should be used. Low-users, (33.3 percent), reported using the innovation only to teach nutrition information. Program developers and members of the panel considered that this was not consistent with the intents of the innovation. Moderate users (48.0 percent) showed no distinguishing characteristics in their use of Foodstyles. Teachers were found to be more likely to use Foodstyles if they taught senior classes, taught only Foods and Nutrition courses, attended a workshop as a teacher rather than as a student-teacher, received the newsletter "In Touch" and had positive attitudes toward the program as measured by the questionnaire. The panel judged Foodstyles to represent a valuable approach to the teaching of nutrition. The results of the study, however, indicated that Foodstyles has had only a moderate impact on the teaching practices of secondary Home Economics teachers in British Columbia. Several implications related to nutrition education practice and to nutrition education research were inferred from the study. Specific recommendations for the review and modification of the Foodstyles program and workshop also emerged. Overall, the approach to evaluation used in this study permitted judgements to be made about the impact of the innovation in nutrition education practice. This approach is recommended for the evaluation of those innovations which are designed to complement existing provincial curricula. / Land and Food Systems, Faculty of / Graduate

Bibliography: pages 88-95. / The aim of the investigation is to assess the extent to which various initiatives aimed at improving the status of a technical subject like Home Economics (H/E), have helped to transform the attitudes and perceptions of teachers and students in a school in Zimbabwe. The study was carried out at Rusununguko Secondary School in Zimbabwe, where H/E was one of the technical subjects within a curriculum mainly dominated by academic subjects. Students and teachers' attitudes and perceptions towards H/E were assessed along the following dimensions: 1. The extent to which H/E is subjected to gender stereotyping; 2. The extent to which H/E is viewed as suitable for slow learners and low-achieving students; 3. The extent to which the subject suffers from subject choice constraints; 4. The extent to which H/E is viewed in terms of low academic and occupational expectations; 5. The extent to which the subject is perceived as offering low-status knowledge when compared to other subjects.

This study is an analysis of the opinions of the graduates of Denton Senior High School concerning the practical arts, namely industrial arts and home economics.

published_or_final_version / Education / Master / Master of Education

This study was prompted by an interest in the extent to which the aims of home economics education in Ireland are being served by the assessment carried out at a national level. This interest led to an empirical investigation of key stakeholders’ perceptions of the validity of home economics assessment and a critical evaluation of its impact on teaching and learning. The data collection primarily comprised interviews with a selection of teachers and other key people such as students, teacher educators and professional home economists; and a complementary analysis of curriculum and design of Junior and Leaving Certificate home economics assessments during the period 2005-2014. The analysis of interview data combined with the curriculum and assessment analyses revealed the compounding impact and washback effect of home economics assessments on student learning experience and outcomes. This impact was reflected in several areas of the findings including an evident satisfaction among the respondents with junior cycle assessment, due to the perceived appropriateness of the assessment design and operational arrangements, and dissatisfaction with curriculum and assessment arrangements at senior cycle as they were considered to be inappropriate and negatively impacting on the quality of learning achieved. The respondents candidly pointed to what they considered to be an acceptance by some teachers of unethical behaviour around the completion of journal tasks. The respondents indicated that summative assessment practices are commonly used in home economics classrooms and the findings strongly suggest that external examinations are influencing teaching methods by demanding a test-oriented pedagogy to enable students to achieve certificate points. The technical analysis of the Junior and Leaving Certificate examination questions confirmed that these external assessments predominantly promote lower-order learning and there are clear indications of a washback effect on the quality of learning achieved. There is a view that the subject's position in the curriculum is weakened due to a lack of coherence around practice, as well as a lack of advocacy and leadership in the field. There was little evidence of the impact of home economics education and many of the interviewees merely 'hoped' that home economics made a difference in the lives of students. The study also showed that there are profiling, identity and teacher agency issues impacting upon the home economics profession. While not immediately generalisable to all home economics teachers or settings in schools, this study nonetheless implies that if the views and practices of the respondents were to be replicated across the whole of the home economics education community, it would not be safe to view national assessment results as a valid indicator of learning and achievement standards in the subject. There are grounds in this work to argue that the subject's values and purposes are not supported by existing curriculum, pedagogy and assessment arrangements.

"It is the purpose of this present study to investigate further the aptitude areas into which Home Economics courses may be classified, and to determine whether a relationship exists between these areas and the areas of the Differential Aptitude Test."--1.