published_or_final_version / Education / Master / Master of Education

Thesis (M.Sc.)--University of Hong Kong, 2003. / Also available in print.

Thesis (M. Ed.)--University of Hong Kong, 2005. / Title proper from title frame. Also available in printed format.

Integrated curriculum reform in China is meant to change the traditional teaching culture. Based on the findings, it is recommended that the education authority should implement the reform in a gradual manner and takes cultural changes into consideration. It is also essential to support the reconstruction of teachers' beliefs and their professional identities. / The education system of Mainland China has been dominated by the discipline-based curriculum. One of the major curriculum reform initiatives launched in September, 2001, is curriculum integration. Two new integrated curricula, "Science" and "History and Society" are implemented in junior secondary schools in the experimental zones. The ideology and teaching approach of these new integrated curricula differ from teachers' usual classroom practices. To what extent are the integrated curricula implemented? How have teachers' beliefs changed? What are the factors shaping these changes? / The study reveals that the deep and core belief of teachers is very stable. The factors influencing teachers' belief changes included the personal experience of teachers, the school environment and the societal context. During the reform, teachers were trapped in two contradictory discourses, one treasured humanistic values fostering personal growth, while the other emphasized standard examination and competition. Facing two paradoxical educational value stances, teachers experienced serious conflicts in their educational beliefs, and their professional identities were challenged. The changes of belief reflect the process of adapting and adjusting to their new roles in the education system. / This study, from a cultural-personal perspective, aimed to show teachers' beliefs and their changes. In this study, two schools and fourteen teachers were chosen to be studied. Ethnographic research methods, including in-depth interview, field observation and document analysis were adopted to inquire into teachers' collective daily experiences, their beliefs and their changes, and factors shaping the changes in beliefs. / 張爽. / 呈交日期: 2006年11月. / 論文(哲學博士)--香港中文大學, 2007. / 參考文獻(p. 369-384). / Cheng jiao ri qi: 2006 nian 11 yue. / Adviser: Lam Chi Chung. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 68-08, Section: A, page: 3270. / Electronic reproduction. Hong Kong : Chinese University of Hong Kong, [2012] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Electronic reproduction. [Ann Arbor, MI] : ProQuest Information and Learning, [200-] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Abstracts in Chinese and English. / School code: 1307. / Lun wen (zhe xue bo shi)--Xianggang Zhong wen da xue, 2007. / Can kao wen xian (p. 369-384). / Zhang Shuang.

本研究旨在藉由國中教師之激勵方式重要性與實現可能性認知兼論其對服務士氣的影響之實證研究，以期瞭解教師與行政間之激勵與保健因素措施最佳認知內涵取向。 　　本研究採取量化研究，以文獻分析法及問卷調查方法為主，受試為桃園縣54所國民中學中，經分層隨機取樣，依比率抽取學校樣本22所，其次再以簡單隨機取樣抽取教師樣本，總共調查問卷對象計1200人。每位受試均以編製之「國民中學教師教學工作調查表」內含「教師理想的工作」、「工作士氣問卷」測試。正式施測，有效樣本1075份，分別以描述性分析、t考驗、單因子變異數、二因子變異數等統計方法進行研究分析。 　　研究結果顯示： 　　一、由國中教師之激勵方式重要性認知分析：國中教師在「學校規模」、「性別」、「年齡」、「職務」、「任教科別」、「年資」上有顯著差異。亦即：學校班級在61班以下、女性、年紀愈輕者、專任、不同領域課程、服務5年以下之教師，都認為工作激勵重要。 　　二、由國中教師「激勵保健」因素重要性認知得知：以「教學環境讓人覺得愉快」、「學校能尊重教師專業權威」、「教學擁有專業自主」、「能讓教師獲致自我成長的機會」、「工作職位能有適切之保障」、「同事間擁有良好的關係」等，為教師激勵方式重要性認知指標。 　　三、由國中教師之激勵方式實現可能性認知發現：國中教師在「職務」、「任教科別」方面對激勵方式實現可能性認知感受有顯著差異。顯示：兼任行政及專任、健康教育與體育、社會科之教師認為理想工作較有可能實現；而私校、偏遠地區之教師則認為理想工作較不可能實現。 　　四、由國中教師「激勵保健」因素實現可能性認知顯示：以「教師具有崇高的責任與使命感」、「教師有機會充分發揮自己的能力」、「工作職位能有適切之保障」、「同事間擁有良好的關係」、「教學擁有專業自主」、「能讓教師獲致自我成長的機會」等，為教師之激勵方式實現可能性認知指標。 　　五、在整體工作士氣的分析得知：桃園縣國中教師在「學校性質」、「年齡」、「職務」、「學歷」、「年資」上有顯著相關。意指：公立國中、年紀愈大、專任、研究所四十學分結業者、年資11-15年及20年以上之教師整體士氣表現較佳。 　　本研究之成果可為行政運作上提出有效激勵方式，以激勵教師潛能，滿足教師個別需求，提昇服務士氣之參考。 / The purpose of this empirical research is to find out the best way to inspire teachers and administrators through finding out the importance of teachers' inspiration ways, realizing the possibility of cognition, and knowing the influence of working atmosphere. 　　This is a quantitative research using data-analysis and questionnaire. The subjects are 1200 teachers randomly picked out from 22 junior high schools in Tao-Yuan County. Each subject has taken the “junior high school teachers' teaching investigation list” which includes “teachers' ideal work” and “teachers' working attitude questionnaire”. After the test taking, there are 1075 valid samples. Descriptive analysis, T-test, one-way ANOVA, and two-way ANOVA are used to analyze the data in this research. 　　The outcome are as followed: 　　1.The cognitive analysis of the importance of junior high school teachers' inspiration ways shows that there are significant differences on variables including “the scale of the school”, “gender”, “age”, “position”, “the course they teach”, “the years being teachers”. This means that teachers in a school scale under 61 classes, young female teachers, teachers teaching in different course fields, and being a teacher under five years all agree the importance of providing inspiration during working. 　　2.Analyzing from the middle school teacher' understanding of the significance of the cause,” motivation-hygiene“：using “Teaching environment will make teacher feel pleased” ,”The school will esteem the teachers' professional authority”, ”Teaching will be acted on its own and be professional”, ”Offering teachers the opportunities of self-development”,”Teaching positions should be guarauteed properly”and “Keeping good relationship among the colleagues”,as the norm of teachers' understanding. 　　3.The cognitive feelings about realizing junior high school teachers' inspiration ways have significant differences on “position” and “the course they teach”. This shows that teachers who teach health, physical, and social science, and teachers who also do administration jobs and full-time teachers think that it's more possible to bring their ideal jobs out to lives. Besides, teachers in private schools, and teachers who teach in remote areas think that bringing out ideal jobs is not an easy thing. 　　4.The analysis through the factor of middle school teachers ” motivation-hygiene“ to achieve the possible understanding：using “Teachers posses the esteemed responsibilities and missions”,”Teachers coudle elaborate their abilities and talents sufficiently ”,” Keeping good relationship among the colleagues”, ”Teaching will be acted on its own and be professional”,and ”Offering teachers the opportunities of self-development”,as the cxiterion of teachers' accomplishing the possible understanding. 　　5.Analyzing from the whole working atmosphere shows that junior high school teachers in Tao-Yuan County have significant differences on variables such as “the school type”, “age”, “position”, “record of formal schooling”, and “years of being a teacher”. This means that teachers in public junior high schools, older teachers, full-time teachers, teachers with master degrees, being teachers more than 20 years and from 11-15 year have better working performance. 　　The outcome of this research can provide effective inspiration ways on administation operating to encourage teachers' latent energy, to satisfy teachers' individual needs, and to promote their working atmosphere.

The Grade 1-9 curriculum policy has changed the traditional curriculum rationale and curriculum design. The large scale and profound influence of this change can be considered a revolutionary transformation during the educational process in Taiwan. The policy implementation has particularly focused on the elementary school and junior high school teachers, which involves not only the change in teachers¡¦ instructional patterns, but also teachers¡¦ professional roles as well as the transformation of their values. ¡@¡@Ideas of the Grade 1-9 curriculum policy have conveyed certain concepts. However, when the policy is implemented, a lot of details are involved, such as instructional plan, instructional method, action research, which require teachers¡¦ abilities for preparation, accompanying measures related to administration, or even the general public¡¦s and parent¡¦s questions about and support of the policy. All these have caused a lot of difficulties during the process of policy administration. Among them, the key point is whether the elementary school and junior high school teachers can identify themselves with the ideas of the curriculum reform, and dedicate themselves to implement this policy goal, which is closely tied to the substantial outcomes of this policy. Based on the context of this problem, it is worthy of a study on understanding this problem, and even resolving the problem. ¡@¡@An educational philosophy works as a basis to form a policy, and does not happen independently in the system of an educational structure. In turn, it is a response to the social context at that time, and is related to the social value system then. When the policies and ideas are implemented, a critical examination of social habits should not be ignored. In order to emphasize the policy analysis of curriculum reform implementation, if the society is considered the conceptual background of policy analysis, the policy formation can be more correctly and comprehensively understood, and can work as a basis to explain the problems due to the policy administration. ¡@¡@On these grounds, this study is based on the social concepts of the Grade 1-9 curriculum policy, and attempts to investigate the correlation between grassroots teachers¡¦ social values and the reform of the Grade 1-9 curriculum policy. The purpose is to explain the relationship between different teachers¡¦ social values and the policy of the curriculum reform, to understand cognitive differences as well as to test and verify the applicability of the methods to reduce the cognitive differences and resolve the cognitive conflicts. ¡@¡@In terms of the research method, the researcher first has referred to Inglehart¡¦s hierarchy of needs (1990:25) to measure the priority of the value index in the social values, and categories the teachers in the study into two different social value groups: materialism and post-materialism. The quasi-experimental method of the Social Judgment Theory (SJT) is applied to judge and analyze the study. The concept of ¡§V.C.S. Strategic Triangle, ¡¨ is applied to define the three indices, value-capacity-support (V.C.S.), in the Grade 1-9 curriculum policy implementation. The function and application of the lens model in the SJT, thus, are verified. It is hoped to test, verify and explain the different cognitive judgments on the beneficial results of the curriculum reform and V.C.S. policy implementation made by the teachers with different social values (criteria, cues, function form, weights, judgment policy and cognitive feedback). ¡@¡@Among the above-mentioned methods, the cognitive feedback model is especially applied to present the subjects¡¦ internal cognitive judgment on policy reference variables, for the purpose of helping the subjects to judge their level of cognitive change after they directly understand and compare their interpersonal learning with others. The findings are as follows: 1. Teachers with different social backgrounds and conditions have different value orientations. 2. Based on the SJT method, two groups with different social values have different cognitive levels of the curriculum policy reform¡¦s beneficial results. (1) The criteria of the curriculum policy reform¡¦s beneficial results among the subjects with different value orientations are very inconsistent, which indicates the cognitive differences between these two groups. (2) Groups with different social values cause different function form models and weights of the three policy reference variables: ¡§V¡¨ ¡§C¡¨ and ¡§S¡¨. Materialists tend to identify themselves with the variable, ¡§S¡¨ while the post-materialists with the other two variables, ¡§V¡¨ and ¡§C¡¨. (3) The three policy reference variables; namely, ¡§V¡¨ ¡§C¡¨ and ¡§S¡¨ among groups with different social values show lower similarity in the judgment policy. 3. After experiencing the interpersonal learning of cognitive feedback, groups with difference social values will make cognitive changes, which result in the narrowed cognitive differences between these two groups. (1) After the cognitive feedback, the cognitive consistency with the subjects will increase. (2) After the cognitive feedback, the actual value and estimated value of the test results among groups with different social values will have higher agreement. (3) After the cognitive feedback, the three function form, and weights, namely, ¡§V¡¨ ¡§C¡¨ and ¡§S¡¨ among groups with different social values have been adjusted toward the cognitive orientation different from theirs (4) After the cognitive feedback, the three cues, namely, ¡§V¡¨ ¡§C¡¨ and ¡§S¡¨ among groups with different social values show higher similarity in the judgment policy. 4. The results of the questionnaire found that groups with different social values and social attributes (such as social conditions during the growing process, family¡¦s social-economic status, age and educational background) have different levels of identification with the three indices, namely, ¡§V¡¨ ¡§C¡¨ and ¡§S¡¨ Materialists tend to identify themselves with the variable, ¡§support,¡¨ while post-materialists with the other two variables, ¡§V¡¨ and ¡§C¡¨. The research results are identical with the research results of the SJT.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Mississippi State University. Department of Counseling, Educational Psychology and Special Education / Title from title screen. Includes bibliographical references.

This study focused on a 1978 teacher strike in the Verde Unified School District, Verde, Arizona, and was designed to investigate the impact the strike had on these teachers' attitudes, perceptions, and behaviors. These factors were examined in terms of: perceptions of the strike issues and causes; influences by significant others to strike or not to strike; personal relationships with significant others prior to, during, and after the strike; viewpoints or perceptions of the strike; personal attitudes concerning professionalism and what it meant to be a professional; and experienced feelings of stress. A questionnaire was developed and administered to forty junior high school teachers to investigate their attitudes, perceptions, and behaviors concerning the strike. The theoretical framework developed for this study, drawn from the literature of perceptual psychology, was used to examine and discuss the data regarding the teachers' attitudes, perceptions, and behaviors. The theoretical framework consisted of the following five categories: The Development and Maintenance of an Adequate Self, The Perceptual Field as a Determinant of Behavior, The Concept of Resistance to Attacks on the Self, The Concept of Economic Welfare as Related to Politics and Human Dignity and the Concept of Self-Maintenance of an Organization or System. Teacher respondents reported the following perceptions regarding the strike and their participation in it: (1)Issues and Causes of the Strike: The most significant perceived issue of the strike, as reported by the junior high school teacher respondents, was "The loss of the established negotiating policy" and a "Challenge to personal dignity." The respondents felt that the strike resulted because of "The way the Board and the District's central administration handled the issues." (2)Influences by Others to Strike or Not to Strike: The respondents reported that they were significantly influenced to strike or not to strike by the teachers' association and by teachers in their respective schools. The respondents indicated that they communicated with teachers in other schools when they were unable to talk to fellow teachers in their own schools. (3)Personal Relationships with Significant Others Prior to, During, and After the Strike: Personal relationships figured as a significant influence in each teacher's decision to strike or not to strike. At the building level, principals were perceived by the respondents as administrative representatives and as such were viewed as threatening and lacking empathy. The striking teacher respondents reported that a special feeling of camaraderie developed among the strikers on the picket lines. The strikers, furthermore, reported supportive relationships existing between themselves, the parents, and the students. (4)Viewpoints or Perceptions of the Strike: From the striking respondents' point of view, the strike was perceived as a phenomenon which they had hoped would never occur. From the non-strikers' point of view, though, the strike was perceived as a battle between two major forces, the National Education Association and the National School Board Association. (5)Personal Attitudes Concerning Professionalism and What it Meant to be a Professional: Professionalism, the teacher respondents reported, meant being involved with and having input into such issues as curriculum development, classroom management, class size, and discipline procedures. The respondents indicated that they had been denied the opportunity to participate in these matters. (6)Experiences of Stress: Stress played a significant role in the strike process from beginning to end. The data indicated many stressful and agonizing moments spent reaching the decision to strike or not to strike. Strained personal relationships developed and appeared to have evoked much stress. For non-strikers especially, the entire stike process was reported to have been stressful.

This research was designed to determine if significant differences exist among the behavioral perceptions and values held by staff and user groups of all junior high schools in a selected independent school district. This study also evaluates the applicability of social profiles to describe perceived organizational behavioral characteristics. Two published, validated survey instruments were used to collect the data. The questionnaires were distributed to randomly selected teachers (staff group) and parents and Parent-Teacher Association officers (user group) from each of the five junior high schools. Of 206 sets of questionnaires distributed, 166 (80.5 percent were returned. Computer analyses of these raw data provided both individual perceptions and descriptions for each junior high school in addition to individual values for each school's staff and user group. The data results show that the social profiles of two of the five schools are perceived differently by both their staff and user groups; furthermore, there are significant differences between the values held by the staff and user groups for each of these schools. For the other three schools, there are minor differences of perception by staff and user groups of their schools' social profiles and also among the values held by the staff and user groups. The data analysis presented in this study led to three primary conclusions. These are that (1) the instruments used complement each other in an analysis of the overall description of an organization; (2) three schools, although perceived by their staff and user groups to have minor differences in behaviors and user-group values held, are similar in organizational characteristics, methods of operation, and overall perceptions; and (3) for two of the schools which are perceived to reflect significant differences in behaviors and values held by staff and user groups, the influence of these differences may require exceptionally proficient administration to produce effectiveness and efficient operations.

published_or_final_version / abstract / Education / Master / Master of Education