The purpose of this study were: 1) to determine whether support exists for Herzberg's two factor theory in an educational setting in Malaysia; 2) to determine and describe the job satisfaction of polytechnic instructors in Malaysia and 3) to examine the relationships between job satisfaction and selected personal charactoristics contextual characterisitcs, and students perceptions of instructors' teaching effectiveness. / Ph. D.

Environmental education (EE) programming has been found to lead to positive behavioral and attitudinal outcomes in student participants. Among a variety of factors, the characteristics of EE program instructors have been found to play a role in driving these outcomes. This thesis investigates the specific motivators of EE instructors and the links between instructor autonomy, prior experience, and program outcomes. I used a multi-methods approach to investigate these themes and have organized the results between two chapters that are manuscripts intended as separate journal publications. Chapter 2 presents a qualitative study that identifies the salient motivators of EE instructors, as well as organizational practices that affect EE instructor feelings of autonomy, competence, relatedness, and the meaningfulness these instructors feel within their jobs. Chapter 3 presents a quantitative study analyzing the impact of autonomy and prior experience on program outcomes by linking instructor and student participant survey responses from a sample of 166 EE programs performed throughout 57 different organizations across the US. Results led to the following recommendations for EE organizations: (1) promote job enrichment elements for their instructional staff, including the implementing of participatory evaluation processes; (2) encourage instructors to take "ownership" of programming, such that they continue to practice and develop competence over time; (3) increase instructor autonomy as they gain further experience. / Master of Science / Environmental education (EE) programming has been found to lead to positive behavioral and attitudinal outcomes in student participants. Among a variety of factors, the characteristics of EE program instructors have been found to play a role in driving these outcomes. This thesis investigates the specific motivators of EE instructors and the links between instructor autonomy, prior experience, and program outcomes. I used a multi-methods approach, employing semi-structured interviews and surveys to investigate these themes, and have organized the results between two chapters that are manuscripts intended as separate journal publications. Chapter 2 presents a qualitative study that identifies the salient motivators of EE instructors, as well as organizational practices that affect EE instructor feelings of autonomy, competence, relatedness, and the meaningfulness these instructors feel within their jobs. Chapter 3 presents a quantitative study analyzing the impact of autonomy and prior experience on program outcomes by linking instructor and student participant survey responses from a sample of 166 EE programs performed throughout 57 different organizations across the US. Results led to the following recommendations for EE organizations: (1) promote job enrichment elements for their instructional staff, including the implementing of participatory evaluation processes; (2) encourage instructors to take “ownership” of programming, such that they continue to practice and develop competence over time; (3) increase instructor autonomy as they gain further experience. This research provides information to better EE organizational management in the aims of promoting motivated employees and ultimately effective program outcomes.

People exercise for various reasons. Some do it to become physically strong, others to improve their cardio fitness, and some to promote their mental health. It is unclear to what extent; but there are those who work out in a way that becomes harmful to them. Exercise can go from being the ultimate expression of health, to becoming a symptom of an eating disorder. Fitness instructors’ and personal trainers’ are responsible for the safety of members at gyms and fitness facilities and for ensuring that they do not injure themselves during a workout session. What is included in the concept of safety is arbitrary and fitness facilities around Sweden approach this in different ways. The purpose of this study is to investigate fitness instructors' and personal trainers' perceptions of their knowledge, competence and responsibility when dealing with eating disorders or suspected eating disorders in the fitness context. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with eight participants consisting of personal trainers and fitness instructors from four different gyms and fitness facilities in the county of Västerbotten, Sweden. Collected data was analysed through reflexive thematic analysis (Braun & Clarke, 2022). The analysis resulted in three themes and ten sub-themes. The results suggest that a majority of the interviewed fitness instructors and personal trainers perceive their theoretical knowledge about eating disorders as good/sufficient, but insufficient regarding practical knowledge to manage eating disorders in the fitness environment. Responding to a concern regarding eating disorders among gym members presents a range of challenges that are described as emotionally stressful. Furthermore, fitness instructors and personal trainers need more practical knowledge in dealing with eating disorders as well as clear guidelines and policies regarding where their responsibilities begin and end.

The purpose of this study is to identify and compare the perceptions of practicing teachers and college instructors toward four components of inservice education programs: content, organization, format of presentation, and participant involvement in the teachers colleges in Thailand. The comparison is based on the demographic variables of sex, age, educational background, and teaching experience in the institution. The "In-Service Education Attitude Survey" by Yesuratnam, Basimalla at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois in 1982 was used to gather data for this study. It was distributed to a sample of 380 practicing teachers and college instructors in 19 randomly selected teachers colleges in Thailand; 368 usable instruments were returned (97.15%). The data were treated to produce numbers and percentages. The t tests for two independent samples were computed to determine any statistically significant differences between the respondent groups of practicing teachers and college instructors, and between the practicing elementary and secondary school teachers. The F tests were also utilized to determine any statistically significant differences among the variables of practicing teachers and college instructors.

En 1919, une convention franco-polonaise qui vise à favoriser l'envoi de travailleurs polonais en France est signée. Dans ce texte, rien n’était indiqué sur la scolarisation des enfants polonais des ouvriers et parents. Or, ces derniers demandaient des ouvertures de cours en langue polonaise auprès de leurs employeurs pour leurs enfants. L'idée du provisoire et l’espoir d’un proche retour au pays régnait alors dans tous les esprits. Dès le début des années 1920 et face à cet impensé de la question scolaire, les autorités françaises devaient faire face à des mises en place de cours polonais, entre autre sous l’égide des compagnies minières. L'État polonais, de son côté, se penchait aussi sur cette question et en 1924, la question de l'ouverture de cours de langue et culture polonaise pour les enfants d'immigrés était évoquée lors de la Conférence franco polonaise qui se tenait à Paris. Les autorités françaises refusaient à ce moment de légiférer et d’institutionnaliser ces enseignements. Mais pour ne pas heurter cet important partenaire polonais, le Comité central des houillères françaises, par l'intermédiaire d'Henri de Peyerimhoff, rédigeait une lettre où il invitait les employeurs à mettre en œuvre ce type de leçon selon deux façons : dans des écoles privées comme dans les écoles publiques. Suite à cela, entre 1925 et 1939, cinq circulaires étaient publiées par le Ministère français de l’instruction publique pour affirmer et préciser les principes réglementant ces cours pour enfants étrangers, immigrés ou d’ascendants immigrés. L'étude des communautés polonaises installées dans les espaces industriels et paternalistes basés près de Caen (département du Calvados) SMN-SMS (Société métallurgique de Normandie - Société des Mines de Soumont) et des classes de polonais qui étaient instituées nous permet de répondre à plusieurs interrogations. Nous pouvons ainsi nous demander, dans un premier temps, en quoi consistaient ces classes pour enfants étrangers (contexte, organisation, financement) mais surtout en quoi ces classes/structures scolaires s'inscrivaient contre une volonté d'intégration. Il est aussi pertinent de s’intéresser aux relations entre les différents acteurs. Autorités françaises et polonaises, mineurs, direction de la mine, C.C.H.F et à travers cela dégager la place, le rôle du moniteur dans une communauté polonaise en France. / In 1919, a Franco-Polish convention aiming to encourage the dispatch of Polish workers to France was signed. In this text, nothing was mentioned as to how the Polish children of work-ers and parents were to be educated, yet the latter were asking their employers that classes be opened and held in Polish for their children. The idea that this was temporary and the hope of soon returning to their homeland then prevailed in all minds. As from the early 1920s, and facing this unconsidered educational issue, French authorities had to contend with the setting up of Polish classes, among other things under the aegis of the mining companies. The Polish State, on its part, was also looking into the situation, and, in 1924, the issue of opening Polish language and culture classes for immigrant children was raised during the Franco-Polish Con-ference that was being held in Paris. At this point in time, French authorities were refusing to legislate and institutionalise these courses. But to not upset this major Polish partner, the Central Committee of French Coal Mines, through the intermediary of Henri de Peyerimhoff, drew up a letter in which it encour-aged employers to implement this type of lesson in two ways: in private schools as in state schools. Further to this, between 1925 and 1939, five circulars were published by the French Ministry of Public Instruction to assert and specify which principles were to regulate these lessons held for foreign children, be they immigrants or born to immigrant ancestors. Studying the Polish communities who settled in the industrial and paternalistic areas based near Caen (in the Calvados department), the SMN-SMS (Metallurgical Society of Normandy – “Société des Mines de Soumont”) and the Polish classes that were instituted enables us to answer several questions. We can thus wonder, initially, what these classes for foreign chil-dren consisted in (context, organisation, funding), but most of all how these classes/school structures went against a desire to integrate. Taking an interest in the relationships the various stakeholders had with one another is also relevant. The French and Polish authorities, miners, the mining board and C.C.F.C.M. (C.C.H.F in French), and through this establish the place, the role an instructor had in a Polish community in France.

The present study aimed to investigate teaching self efficacy beliefs of instructors working at university prep-schools and to examine whether years of teaching experience, English competency, self reported proficiency and graduate department predicted instructors&rsquo / self efficacy beliefs and their efficacy beliefs in student engagement, instructional strategies and classroom management. Two-hundred-fifty-seven prep-school instructors from universities in Ankara participated in the study. The data were collected through Teacher Sense of Efficacy Scale, Self Reported English Proficiency Scale and Language Teaching Methods Scale. Both descriptive and inferential statistics, correlation and hierarchical regression analysis, were utilized by PASW 18. The results of the study indicated that the instructors have quite higher overall self efficacy beliefs. The instructors feel more efficacious in classroom management than using instructional strategies while they feel least efficacious in student engagement. Moreover, instructors&rsquo / overall self efficacy beliefs were significantly predicted by experience, English competency and self reported proficiency. Student engagement efficacy was not predicted by experience while it was significantly predicted by English competency and self reported proficiency. Instructional strategy efficacy beliefs were significantly predicted by experience, English competency and self reported proficiency. Classroom management efficacy was predicted by experience and self reported proficiency while English competency was not a significant predictor. Being a graduate of Faculties of Education was not a significant predictor in any regression models. Lastly, there was a significant relationship between the instructors&rsquo / use of communicative method and their overall self efficacy beliefs and its three sub-scales.

This study explored the learning experience of Arabic language learners at the college level, focusing on their perception of effective and ineffective Arabic language teachers as well as the influence of their experiences on their motivation. The study also attempted to shed some light on the nature of the teacher-student interaction within the current sociopolitical context. The 29 students who agreed to participate in this study were all Arabic language learners enrolled in the second year or higher of Arabic at a major university in the United States. Data were collected from multiple sources including an open-ended survey and semi-structured interviews that were conducted on a one-on-one basis with the participants. Data were analyzed using coding procedures suggested by Strauss and Corbin (1998) from a grounded theory qualitative approach. Results indicated that participants perceived their effective Arabic language teachers as adaptable teachers. These adaptable teachers influence learners' learning outcomes by balancing their high expectations of their students with an awareness of language learning needs. Moreover, participants' perceptions of their best Arabic learning experiences were always associated with adaptable teachers, whose positive interaction style radiated throughout in their teaching. The data indicated that participants were intrinsically motivated in four different ways: (1) intrinsic motivation for the linguistic aspects of Arabic, (2) intrinsic motivation for knowledge, (3) intrinsic motivation for optimal experience, and (4) intrinsic motivation for accomplishment. Moreover, motivation constructs such as expectancy-value, self-efficacy, and flow were related to the students' experiences. According to many students, the more years they spent in learning Arabic, the more they had become obsessed with it. Most participants in this study credited both native and non-native speakers as effective language teachers.. Participants credited their native teachers for their linguistic knowledge and their in-depth understanding of the Arabic culture and described them as resourceful. At the same time, they credited non-native teachers for their pedagogical knowledge, organizational skills, and knowledge of learners' characteristics, and described them as role models. Suggestions for future research and implications for research and practice are discussed. / Not available / text

As more students enter Canadian universities from different cultural and linguistic backgrounds, supporting the development and transition of their academic writing skills through assignment and feedback design has become very important. Many of these students and their instructors identify academic writing as one of the students’ biggest problems in a Western university or college (Robertson, Line, Jones & Thomas, 2000; Yang, 1994; Zhu & Flaitz, 2005). Yet there is little support available for the instructors who work with these students (Dedrick & Watson, 2002). This study focuses on my interactions with three instructors in graduate programs that have a high proportion of international students who use English as an additional language (EAL). By weaving together action research and case study research, three themes became apparent: the instructors saw no clear distinction between the needs of EAL students and those who have English as a first language; the instructors were unclear about how to teach writing in their discipline; and, the instructors felt frustrated and overburdened by their workload. I also learned how I, as a researcher and an educational developer, can better interact with instructors to ensure support at the level of assignment and feedback design. The first lesson is when interacting with others it is necessary to identify the lens that represents one’s institutional and cultural lens. Because I did not adequately identify and interrogate my lens, I gave in to my colonial impulse to direct the study and the participants. The second lesson is the space in which we two instructors – the person from a given discipline and the person who is an educational developer – come together as a kind of “contact zone” (Pratt, 1998). I had hoped that the instructors and I would come together as a kind of Venn diagram, with our knowledge overlapping in a neutral and fruitful way, but I learned that the space where we come together is fraught and vulnerable for both the participants and the researcher. The third lesson is that relationships, which traditionally are not highly valued in our workplace in higher education, are extremely important in order to foster dialogue, continue conversations, and allow for the necessary revisiting and development of our work together. The main recommendation stemming from this study is workplace training for administrative staff who are in educational development positions. This study is important because there is little previous research in this area. As more Learning and Teaching Centres emerge at Canadian institutions, we must learn how to work effectively with instructors to affect curricular and assignment change. We must also question whether the kind of support a member of a Learning and Teaching Centre can provide is enough to affect this change, or whether other models, such as the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning and faculty mentoring, are essential in the development of the understanding of how to better support the development of the academic writing skills of international EAL students.

This study examined allied health and nursing career and technical education (CTE) teacher beliefs and attitudes about reading. Since beliefs and attitudes influence the way teachers teach, it is important to understand what those beliefs and attitudes are, especially in relationship to reading in subject matter classrooms. One hundred twelve individuals responded to a written survey concerning their attitudes and beliefs about reading. A four-factor solution was achieved with a principal components factor analysis. A significant number of variables were associated with the factor labeled Reading Apathy, which appears to be indicative of the condition known as aliteracy among faculty who participated in the study. Professional development activities grounded in novice-to-expert theory are suggested as a way of overcoming the phenomenon. Recommendations for future research involve a more detailed study to further characterize the condition of aliteracy and its impact on student learning.

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