This study discussed the need for a broader public discourse on high-stakes accountability-based school reform that underscores teachers' perspectives. Also, the study discussed the need for fuller disclosure of the possible undesirable classroom effects of the reform. To address these needs, the study described teachers' perspectives on the Standards of Learning (SOL) school reform in Virginia, focusing upon teachers' views on the reform's classroom effects. The domains of interest were (1) the adequacy of curriculum and the diversity of teachers' instructional strategies, (2) the quality of student learning, (3) teachers' sense of professional autonomy and level of teacher tension, and (4) school quality. The study examined whether there are differences in teachers' views based the income level of the school locale where teachers teach (low-, middle-, or high-income), the school type (elementary, middle, or high school) in which they teach, and teachers' status on whether they teach a SOL-tested subject (yes/no). The participants of the study included 360 randomly selected teachers who were listed as members of Virginia Education Association (VEA). A survey research design was employed. The instrument included 80 Likert-type items, eight demographic items, and three open-ended questions. Inferential and descriptive statistics were reported for eight scales of the survey as were thematic trends in the qualitative data. The study's results suggested that the SOL program contributes to a hurried, high-pressure classroom culture that depletes the potentiality of the very ends of education the program is intended to achieve. Teachers tended to report (1) an inadequacy of the SOL content standards, (2) a reduction of teachers' use of diverse instructional strategies and an inability of the SOL program to meet diverse student needs, (3) arbitrary SOL test cut-scores, (4) an inadequacy of the SOL pass rates to represent school quality, (5) a lack of diagnostic usefulness of SOL test scores, (6) an inadequacy of SOL testing and SOL test scores to hold schools accountable, (7) teachers' sense of diminished professional autonomy, and (8) teachers' mounting tension in the classroom. These results were juxtaposed to the views of policymakers and business leaders, the public at large, parents, and scholars in the field of education concerning the issue of high-stakes accountability-based school reform. Finally, the study discussed a conflict related to the purpose of public schooling between a prevailing narrative of many policymakers and business leaders and what have been the marginalized views of classroom teachers. / Ph. D.

Det här produktionsarbetet undersöker hur enligt tidigare forskning erkända differentierade strategier återfinns i  läroböcker som används i kursen Matematik 2b, en kurs där en stor andel elever får underkänt betyg. Många lärare  utgår från lärobokens uppbyggnad när de utformar sin matematikundervisning vilket lägger stor vikt vid hur läroboken  är utformad. Syftet med arbetet är därför att undersöka om läroböcker som används i kursen Matematik 2b är  utformade på ett sätt som hjälper läraren att lyckas med sitt differentierande uppdrag i det inkluderande klassrummet. Resultatet införskaffades genom en kvalitativ innehållsanalys och visade att strategierna struktur, mängdträning,  explicita instruktioner, metastrategier, vardagsmatematik och visuella representationer återfinns på flera olika sätt,  både i lärobokens förklarande text och övningsuppgifter. Slutsatsen är att läroböckerna har potential att ge läraren förutsättningar för att lyckas med differentieringsuppdraget. Dock krävs det att läraren är förtrogen både med  läroboken och elevernas olika behov för att kunna använda läroboken på ett sätt, som möter dessa behov. / This production paper examines how differentiating instructional strategies that are acknowledged by earlier research  are found in textbooks that are used in one of the upper secondary courses in math, a course that a great proportion of students fail. Many teachers base their instruction in mathematics on the textbook, which imposes great significance on how the textbook is designed. The purpose of the paper is therefore to examine if textbooks that are used in the course are designed in a way that helps the teacher to achieve with their differentiating task in the inclusive classroom. The  result was obtained through a qualitative content analysis and showed that the strategies structure, extended repetition, explicit instruction, meta strategies, everyday math and visual representations were found in a variety of ways, both in the  explanatory text and the exercises of the textbooks. The conclusion is that the textbooks have potential to provide the  teacher with prerequisites to succeed with their differentiating task. However, this requires that the teacher is  conversant with the textbook in order to be able to use it in a conscious way which addresses different student needs.

Diante do crescente desenvolvimento da tecnologia da informação e da comunicação, o sistema educacional vem gradualmente modificando as estratégias de ensino-aprendizagem, adaptando para tanto, os tradicionais procedimentos e técnicas didáticas aos instrumentos tecnológicos fornecidos pelos ambientes virtuais de aprendizagem. O processo de avaliação e acompanhamento da aprendizagem nestes ambientes requer o uso de novas estratégias de ensino que congregue os recursos tecnológicos e a intervenção positiva do professor/tutor. Propõe-se um modelo de design instrucional estendido do \"Integrative Learning Design Framework On-line\" (ILDF) sob o enfoque da taxonomia dos objetivos educacionais de Bloom e do ciclo de aprendizagem vivencial de Kolb adaptado por Belhot para uma disciplina de pós-graduação em Engenharia de Produção. Este modelo foi implementado e avaliado na disciplina \"Metodologia de Pesquisa para Engenharia\" oferecida no primeiro semestre de 2008 para 14 alunos de pós-graduação de Engenharia de Produção e envolveu o planejamento, elaboração e disposição do material didático e de atividades orientadas no ambiente virtual de aprendizagem - Moodle. Sugere-se um protocolo de organização de estratégias dialógicas como os fóruns de discussões on-line e uma rubrica avaliativa sobre a qualidade, quantidade, relevância, forma das mensagens e dos níveis de conhecimento cognitivo dos alunos para a construção do conhecimento colaborativo. Os resultados revelam que, as estratégias dialógicas e exploratórias adotadas, promoveram a evolução dos alunos com relação aos níveis de desenvolvimento cognitivo e da aprendizagem vivencial e contribuíram para a construção do conhecimento de forma colaborativa e significativa. / Faced with increasing development of information technology and communication, the educational system is gradually changing the teaching-learning strategies, adapting to both the traditional procedures and techniques for teaching technologica tools provided by the virtual environment of learning. The evaluation process and monitoring of learning in this environment require the use of new teaching strategies for bringing together the technological resources and positive intervention of the teacher/tutor. The present work proposes a model of instructional design extended from the \"Integrative Learning Design Framework On-line\" (ILDF) under the focus of the taxonomy of educational objectives of Bloom and the Kolb´s cycle of experiential learning adapted by Belhot to a discipline of Production Engineering postgraduate program. This model was implemented and assessed during the course \"Research Methodology for Engineering\" offered in the first half of 2008 to 14 postgraduate students of Production Engineering and it involved the planning, preparation and disposal of teaching material and activities geared to virtual environment of learning - Moodle. It is suggested a protocol for organizing dialogical strategies as forums for discussions on-line and a evaluative rubric about quality, quantity, relevance, and the message structures, and the levels of cognitive knowledge of the students for the construction of collaborative knowledge. The results show that the dialogical and exploratory strategies adopted, have contributed to the progress of students with respect to the levels of cognitive development and the experiential learning and they have also contributed to the construction of knowledge in a collaborative and significant way.

O Centro de Estudos de Línguas (CEL) é um projeto da Secretaria da Educação do governo do estado de São Paulo que oferece aos alunos da rede estadual e, em alguns casos da rede municipal, cursos gratuitos de línguas estrangeiras. Devido à evasão de alunos e ao baixo número de matrículas em alguns idiomas, a cada estágio as turmas ficam menores, exigindo a formação de salas multisseriadas para garantir ao estudante a continuação e a conclusão do curso. As classes multisseriadas dos CEL são compostas por discentes de várias idades e que possuem diferentes níveis de conhecimento da língua estrangeira. Nossa pesquisa tem como objetivo analisar as estratégias de ensino que os professores de língua italiana dos CEL utilizam para ensinar nas turmas multisseriadas. Fomos orientados pela hipótese de que os professores do CEL empregariam estratégias de ensino iguais ou parecidas às aplicadas pelos docentes que lecionam no ensino multisseriado da zona rural. Para a realização desta pesquisa, fizemos uma revisão sobre o funcionamento dos CEL, sobre as salas multisseriadas do campo e sobre as estratégias de ensino adotadas no contexto multisseriado e em aulas de línguas estrangeiras. Com o propósito de alcançar o nosso objetivo, adotamos a metodologia qualitativa e escolhemos o questionário on-line e a entrevista individual, semiestruturada como técnicas de coleta de dados. As participantes do estudo são professoras de italiano de grupos multisseriados de Centros de Estudos de Línguas da capital e da Grande São Paulo. Cruzamos os dados obtidos pelas duas técnicas e analisamos as três estratégias de ensino mais presentes no discurso das professoras. Comprovamos que as docentes usam estratégias que também podem ser verificadas na zona rural, ou seja, organização dos espaços físico e social, administração do tempo e emprego dos materiais didáticos. O espaço social é mais valorizado que o físico, o que conta é o aprimoramento da aprendizagem e a interação entre os estudantes de estágios diferentes. O tempo é administrado muitas vezes de forma inconsciente, mas está sempre presente na organização do atendimento dos diferentes estágios. O livro didático é essencial, todavia há um empenho em criar outras atividades empregando vários tipos de materiais. A análise nos mostrou que a maioria das professoras decidiu ensinar com os grupos organizados de maneira multisseriada. Na ausência de uma orientação pedagógica específica e do reconhecimento do Estado, as docentes, por meio da prática, criam a forma própria de lecionar, esforçam-se em adequar estratégias de ensino para cada turma. / The Language Study Center (LSC) is a governmental project of the Education Secretariat of the São Paulo State that offers for the students from state and, in some cases from the municipal, free courses in foreign languages. Due to the evasion students and low number of enrollments in some languages, each stage classes are smaller, requiring the formation of multigrade classrooms to ensure students the continuation and completion of the course. The multigrade classes of LSC are composed of students of different ages and have different levels of knowledge of a foreign language. Our research aims to analyze the use of instructional strategies to teach by the italian teachers in multigrade classes of LSC. We were guided by the assumption that LSC teachers employ teaching strategies in the same way or similar to those applied by the teachers who teach in multigrade teaching the countryside. For this research, we have made a review of the functioning of multigrade classrooms and the teaching strategies adopted for foreign language classes in multigrade context. In order to achieve our goal, we adopted a qualitative methodology choosing the online questionnaire and individual interviews, semi-structured as data collection techniques and well. Study participants are italian teachers of multigrade classes from São Paulo Language Study Centers. We crossed the data obtained by the two techniques and analyze the three instructional strategies more present in the discourse of teachers. We have proved that the teachers use strategies that can also be checked in the countryside, that is, related to physical and social space, time and materials. The social space is more valued than the physical, what counts is the improvement of learning and interaction among students of different stages. Time is administered often unconsciously, but is always present in the organization of care of the different stages. The textbook is essential, but there is a commitment to create other activities using various materials. The analysis has shown that most teachers decided to teach in organized groups multisseriate way. In the absence of a specific tutoring and state recognition, the teachers, through practice, create their own way of teaching, strive to adapt instructional strategies for each class.

Developing online instructional strategies for increasing student engagement and success is significant locally and nationally due to growth in the online field, advances in technology, and the need for colleges to maximize student success. This study stemmed from the desire of administrators at an upstate New York private college to discover additional ways to design and deliver effective online instruction. The purpose of this qualitative instrumental case study was to discover faculty perceptions of and experiences with instructional strategies that they used to foster student engagement in online learning. Kearsley and Shneiderman's engagement theory formed the study's conceptual framework. Ten faculty members, who had taught online for at least 3 years at the study site, completed an open-ended, anonymous online survey, provided documents for analysis, and participated in a semi-structured, one-on-one interview. Data analysis revealed five themes that add insight to the attributes of student engagement theory by discovering instructional strategies that foster interaction for online students: instructor presence, effective communication, course consistency, engaging content, and a humanizing learning environment. Using these findings, a position paper was written, which includes the recommendation that a new professional development initiative, a communities-of-practice e-learning site, be created to share study findings. Dissemination of study findings at conferences may increase online practitioners' knowledge of instructional strategies that engage online learners and improve student satisfaction and success, potentially resulting in positive social change.

Students with emotional and behavioral disorders (E/BD) have academic deficits that affect their success in school; however, few researchers have investigated what strategies work best for this population, especially in the area of writing. One promising intervention to support the writing skills of students with and at-risk for E/BD is self-regulated strategy development (SRSD). SRSD is a six-stage, explicit strategy instruction model that includes procedures for goal setting, self-monitoring, self-instruction, and self-reinforcement and can be generalized to a variety of writing tasks. The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of an SRSD persuasive writing intervention on the writing achievement of 44 students in a residential school. Results of a piecewise hierarchical linear modeling growth curve analysis suggest statistically significant gains were made over the course of the intervention in writing (quality, correct word sequences, and essay elements) and academic engagement. Effects also generalized to writing achievement measures. In addition, teachers implemented the intervention with high fidelity, and both students and teachers rated the intervention as socially acceptable, with higher ratings postintervention.

The purpose of this study was to examine the predictors of teachers&rsquo / sense of efficacy including gender, teaching field, years of teaching experience, satisfaction with performance, support from colleagues, support from parents, and support from administration, and teaching resources. The present study was conducted in the 2006-2007 academic year. The study included a total of 383 science, mathematics, and classroom teachers from 62 elementary schools of &Ccedil / ankaya district in Ankara. Data were collected through Teachers&rsquo / Sense of Efficacy Scale (Tschannen-Moran &amp / Woolfolk Hoy, 2001). In the present study, data were analyzed by utilizing four separate hierarchical regression analyses. Results showed that gender, teaching field, and years of teaching experience variables were not significant predictors for overall teacher efficacy, efficacy in instructional strategies, efficacy in classroom management, and efficacy in student engagement, whereas satisfaction with performance variable made significant contribution to all dependent variables. Parental support and teaching resources predicted only efficacy in student engagement.

The purpose of this qualitative case study was to examine the beliefs of 5 experienced instructors about the ways adults learn in online professional development (OPD) courses, beliefs about creating online learning environments, and beliefs about instructional strategies for facilitating adult learning. The following questions guided this study: 1. What are the instructor’s beliefs about the ways that adults learn in online professional development courses? 2. What are the instructor’s beliefs about creating an online learning environment for adult learners? 3. What are the instructor’s beliefs about the use of instructional strategies to facilitate online learning with adults? The setting for the study was the professional development program of a large metropolitan school district in the southeastern United States. Data were collected through interviews, discussion board postings, and instructor journals and analyzed using a constant comparative method (Glaser & Strauss, 1967; Strauss & Corbin, 1998). The following themes emerged from the data: • Adult learning in OPD courses is an active process of making connections and applying knowledge and skills. • Learning for adults in OPD courses must be useful, meaningful, relevant, practical, adaptable, and applicable to the work setting. • Learning for adults in an OPD course requires more effort and commitment than learning in face-to-face professional development settings. • Adult learners in OPD courses need a comfort zone where they can feel “safe” communicating and interacting with learners and the instructor. • Adult learners need varying amounts of encouragement, support, guidance, and nurturing within a positive online learning environment(OLE)that supports and sustains them. • Instructors believe that collaboration is an effective strategy for facilitating learning with adults in OPD courses, yet existing barriers limit collaboration. • The OPD instructor is a flexible facilitator of learning who uses different types of feedback to confirm, correct, and inform learning with adults.

Students with emotional and behavioral disorders (E/BD) have academic deficits that affect their success in school; however, few researchers have investigated what strategies work best for this population, especially in the area of writing. One promising intervention to support the writing skills of students with and at-risk for E/BD is self-regulated strategy development (SRSD). SRSD is a six-stage, explicit strategy instruction model that includes procedures for goal setting, self-monitoring, self-instruction, and self-reinforcement and can be generalized to a variety of writing tasks. The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of an SRSD persuasive writing intervention on the writing achievement of 44 students in a residential school. Results of a piecewise hierarchical linear modeling growth curve analysis suggest statistically significant gains were made over the course of the intervention in writing (quality, correct word sequences, and essay elements) and academic engagement. Effects also generalized to writing achievement measures. In addition, teachers implemented the intervention with high fidelity, and both students and teachers rated the intervention as socially acceptable, with higher ratings postintervention.

In Guyana, South America, the Ministry of Education seeks to provide universal, inclusive education that prepares its citizens to take their productive places in society and to creatively solve complex, real-world problems. However, with frequent national assessments that are used to place students in high school, college or into jobs, teachers resort to using familiar strategies such as lecture, recitation and test drilling. Despite their efforts, over 56% of students are failing the Grade 6 assessments, 43% failing 10th grade Mathematics and over 60% failing college algebra courses. Such performance has been linked to students’ lower academic self-concept and their negative attitudes toward mathematics aggravated by an autocratic culture that continues to view the teacher as sole authority. Subjectivist instructional strategies integrate constructivism and affect by providing a learning experience that gives children more autonomy as they solve contextually relevant algebraic problems. In a quasi-experimental study involving a treatment and control group of eighth grade students at a high school in Guyana, a modified version of the Mathematics Value Inventory was used to measure students’ attitudes towards mathematics before and after the 10-week treatment. Scores on the final examination were used to determine achievement in algebra. Forty seven students in the treatment group were guided in exploring and discovering concepts for themselves. Formal definitions were delayed until after the students experimented with relatable scenarios. Forty two students in the control group were taught using multiple opportunities to practice. Analysis was done using General Linear Models to determine the variance in achievement and attitude scores accounted for by the instructional strategies while controlling for sex, challenge index, and, pretreatment scores for attitude and achievement. The challenge index was developed to identify outside influences on students’ performance such as: travel time; whether living at home; number in household; sleepiness; noisiness; and, resource availability. Results were not all as expected but some interesting relationships surfaced between the challenges, attitudes towards mathematics and achievement scores. Ultimately it was determined that the environment in which students had to study and the challenges they faced outweighed the small gains in attitude changes for the treatment group.