This study aims to investigate the ways in which EFL teachers in Saudi Arabia use, design, and evaluate their teaching materials, in a context where teachers are expected to use only the prescribed textbooks inside the classroom. The extent to which teachers supplement and adapt the set textbook is used as an indicator of their willingness and ability to adapt their teaching in response to the needs of the learners in their classrooms. Saudi teachers’ willingness and ability to take control of their personal teaching and learning in this way is investigated using Huang’s framework of autonomy. The study explores the different responses of the teachers in the study to the policy of the Ministry of Education regarding the use of the prescribed textbook and the extent to which through their use, design and evaluation of teaching materials, teachers are able to enhance their professionalism. Data was collected using classroom observations and semi-structured interviews of 6 male EFL (English as a Foreign Language) teachers in Saudi public schools and analysed using Narrative and Grounded theory approaches. The hybrid approach adopted for this study proved useful in uncovering much rich information about teachers’ perceptions about and use of the textbook and the implications of the extent to which they engaged in materials development in response to the needs of their students. The study revealed different perceptions and degrees of responsiveness to the need to adapt materials for the learners in the classroom. In some instances, whilst teachers described themselves as exercising autonomy the observation of classroom practice was not entirely consistent with such a perception. Conversely, some teachers were more proactive in the classroom than responses in interviews might suggest. The study builds on previous work into the trend for learners in EFL classrooms in Saudi Arabia to exercise more learner autonomy and the relationship between learner demands, the capacity of teachers to engage in materials development and teacher professionalism is examined. The study concludes that more research into providing scope for adaptation and variation in the use of textbooks in EFL in classrooms in Saudi Arabia could shed light on how institutional and personal constraints on teacher autonomy could be mediated without jeopardising the quality and consistency of learning and teaching.

In the 21st Century, the need for Tanzania to navigate through the impact of globalisation with a more responsive school curriculum was evident, and TC2005 was an effort towards this end. My study was on the formulation, management and implementation of TC2005 with special emphasis on disadvantaged localities. I sought to answer three central questions: (1) What role did curriculum stakeholders play in the TC2005 process and with what effect? (2) How relevant and practicable was TC2005 to students, parents and communities? 3) How was management carried out and with what effect to actual classroom teaching? Critical Policy Sociology (CPS) was the conceptual framework guiding the research with data availed through questionnaires, interviews, focus group discussions and documentary review. Purposive sampling provided the 201 participants of the study from state and non-state institutions, local and central government, school heads, teachers, parents and students. Data corpus was mainly transcriptions and summaries. An eclectic model adopted from Vidovich (2001), Gale (2002), Ball 1994, 1993) and Bowe et al (1992) guided data analysis with contexts that influenced production and enactment of TC2005 identified and interpreted. The findings suggested the existence of unequal power relations between the state and stakeholders with the former not only controlling and dictating terms from the centre, but also excluding even practitioners. Bi-partisan politics were also portrayed with parties struggling for inclusion of their values as the centre fought to retain status quo. The good intentions of TC2005 was noted, but weighed down by a multitude of limitations e.g. lack of resources, influence of the polity, donor pressure and global agenda. Finally, management of TC2005 process was authoritarian rather than participatory and thus the best use of other people’s skills to arrive at more effective decisions was not made. Hence TC2005 featured rigid syllabuses that were to be translated using State-vetted textbooks. Teachers’ sense of autonomy was eroded to render them unable to broker and craft their own policies as professionals.

An investigation into the dynamics of the National Curriculum Geography Working Group from its establishment in May 1989 until June 1990 when it was disbanded. The thesis is primarily concerned with the ways in which the Geography Working Group approached its task of devising a National Curriculum for Geography. As such it explores the terms of reference and supplementary guidance given to the Group, the working relationships established both within and beyond the immediate membership of the Group, and their visualisation of the task before them. Inevitably the focus is widened to set the context for the work of the Group. The place of geography as a school subject this century is examined, as well as events immediately following the creation of the Geography National Curriculum by the Group. Consideration is given to the composition and functioning of the Group, the production of an Interim Report (DES 1989) and Final Report (DES 1990) for geography, and the resultant implementation problems caused by the politically altered Statutory Orders (1991), over which the Group had no influence or control. The thesis ends with an analysis of the possible futures for geographical education within state schools in the context of recent developments in academic geography.

The central focus of this study is to explore how three primary school teachers were implementing Hong Kong's Target-Oriented Curriculum (TOC) in their lower primary English classrooms. TOC is a task-based, process-oriented innovation, introduced from 1995 onwards. The study involved a case study approach by which teachers' perceptions and behaviours were analysed during the period of a single academic year. Data collection methods for the study comprised mainly classroom observation and interviews. The former involved the study of five or six consecutive English lessons for each teacher in three separate cycles, the latter involved six semi-structured interviews per teacher. The emphasis was on qualitative data and analysis, although quantitative classroom and attitude scale data were also collected. The main findings from the study were as follows. Teacher A was positively oriented towards TOC, had a sound understanding and was implementing TOC principles to a high degree. Teacher B was somewhat neutrally disposed towards the innovation, was only in the process of developing an understanding of it, and was not implementing it as much as teacher A. Teacher C was very positively oriented towards TOC, had a sound understanding of its principles but was only able to implement it to a similar extent to teacher B. The main significance of the study includes: insights into research methodology derived from the execution of the study; confirmation and development of the theory of the management of change; insights into the classroom implementation of the key TOC classroom principles, task-based learning and catering for individual learner differences; and implications on the cultural appropriateness of TOC for the Hong Kong context.

This study proposes a rational basis for pre-vocational. education (PVE) teacher preparation and training in Jordan based on a thorough assessment of the teacher's role and responsibilities. Qualitative and quantitative data collection methods were employed. These included semi-structured interviews with members of the Jordanian National Teams for PVE Curriculum Development and for Supervision on PVE Curriculum Development, as well as with PVE supervisors in Jordan. Selfcompletion questionnaires were also administered to a sample of PVE teachers and educational supervisors. Asserting that design and implementation of a successful training programme should be founded on the job activities and competencies required, this study presents a job description for the PVE teacher, analyses the activities involved, and identifies the associated competencies. The study proceeds to scrutinise the components of WE teacher preparation, analyses the current delivery of PVE in Jordan, identifies some deficiencies, and considers potential corrective action. The study also discusses the necessity of vocational field experience for the PVE teacher. Current programmes of PVE teacher preparation are critically examined, shortcomings are identified, and proposals for improvement are discussed.

A study comparing University of Wisconsin-Stout freshmen and senior education majors’ computing and Internet technology skills/knowledge and associated learning experiences was conducted. Instruments used in this study included the IC³® Exam by Certiport, Inc. and the investigator’s Computing and Internet Skills Learning Experiences survey. UW-Stout freshmen education majors participating in the study demonstrated poor computing and Internet technology skills/knowledge. UW-Stout senior education majors participating in the study demonstrated marginal computing and Internet technology skills/knowledge. Both UW-Stout freshmen and senior education major study participants identified evidence of poor formal and informal learning experiences to develop computing and Internet technology skills/knowledge in elementary school, middle school and high school. Senior education major participants indicated more instances of formal and informal learning experiences in post-secondary schooling and employment. Informal self-teaching methods to develop computing and Internet technology skills/knowledge were more evident with UW-Stout senior education majors who participated in the study. Notable comparisons by class and major were conducted after initial analysis showing the impact of specific formal and informal learning experiences. Recommendations to improve UW-Stout education majors computing and Internet technology skills/knowledge follow Robin Kay’s Evaluating Strategies Used to Incorporate Technology into Preservice Education (2006).

The rationale of this thesis stems from the argument that intercultural skills and knowledge are indispensable to the process of internationalizing Higher Education in Taiwan, which is a primary goal set by the Taiwanese government. This thesis seeks to investigate how the integration of cultural studies with English as a Foreign Language syllabus can provide Taiwanese university students with opportunities to enter an ‘inter’ space where they cross linguistic and cultural boundaries, and where they are able to engage in cross cultural dialogue. It presents both theoretical and practical components of a potential culturally based university English course. The theoretical concept of the “third space”, as described by Bhabha and Kramsch and others, is a crucial dimension in the intercultural classroom in which students can reinterpret Otherness and their own culture. This thesis also explores how a cultural syllabus that includes essential elements of cultural studies and that utilizes generally available materials and topics, with appropriate instructional approaches, can be interwoven into the English language classroom and provide students with opportunities to critically voice their own opinions. Data were collected during a five-month study among first year university students in a medical university in Taiwan. Quantitative and qualitative data together provide evidence to determine a necessity for intercultural competence in the language classroom, and possible ways it can be developed or enhanced. The evidence indicates that given appropriate opportunities, students are willing to deepen their sociocultural knowledge of Self and Other and at the same time improve their language skills. This thesis offers a perspective that differs from the traditional four skills English education that presently dominates education in Taiwan. It concludes by recommending including an intercultural syllabus in EFL classrooms at the tertiary level and with implications for university and national educational policies and practices, and includes recommendations for future research.

The purpose of this thesis is to clarify different aspects of the nursing curriculum from lecturers' and students' points of view in Iran. The evaluation employed a triangulation technique in order to assess the strengths and weaknesses of the nursing programme and to provide explanations for its successes and failures. In addition, it attempts to find whether there was any relationship between the characteristics of the respondents and their evaluation of the curriculum. The thesis begins with an introduction to the research. The general policy of The Ministry of Health in nursing education and also the main problems which the students and the teaching staff are confronted with, and the deficiencies of facilities are clarified as background to the research. After describing the main features of the nursing curriculum, some critical issues in nursing education are reviewed. At first, investigations on the nursing curriculum in general are analysed and then nursing research on a particular course of a component of the nursing curriculum is described. The conceptual framework of the research explores different concepts of curriculum and its evaluation. Methodological issues and the findings of the research are also presented in detail. In order to make inferences about the characteristics of the lecturer and student populations from the characteristics of the samples drawn from these populations, inferential statistics are applied. The most important findings of this study fall into three categories: The different components of the curriculum from viewpoints of the lecturers and students were: - Goal: ambiguous from the respondents' viewpoints; - Content: acceptable from the respondents' viewpoints: - Methodology: controversial. Lecturers were critical of the teaching methods. On the other hand, they were acceptable to the students; - Evaluation: controversial. Assessment approaches of the individuals were acceptable to the lecturers but not acceptable to the students; There was no common viewpoint among the respondents about the nursing components of the curriculum. None of the respondents' characteristics had a statistical significant relationship with their perceptions about evaluation of the nursing curriculum.

This research offers an analysis of social practices and discourses at work in the assessment of Media Studies students following the OCR AS specification produced for ‘Curriculum 2000’, in its first examination session - January 2001. The purpose of the research is not to scrutinise the accuracy of such assessment, or its value, but to raise questions about subject identity at the institutional level represented by an awarding body. In particular, the intention is to investigate further issues about assessment as a social practice raised by Nick Peim in his analysis of the cultural politics of English teaching. In addition the thesis sets out to ‘test’ his suggestion that Media Studies might offer an alternative to the cultural problems he identifies within the practices of ‘Subject English.’ The method adopted is discursive and theoretical, applying critical discourse analysis, phenomenology and deconstruction. The writers whose ideas and ways of thinking about discourse, language and pedagogy are most significantly ‘applied’ to data acquired through the research are Michel Foucault and Basil Bernstein. The conclusions drawn offer a response to Peim’s suggestions, and raise more questions about subject identity for Media teachers to consider. In particular, the data analysed lends itself to an analysis of the assumptions, logical inconsistencies and oppositions set up by ‘Subject Media’ and to a discussion about the relationship between a subject’s ‘spirit’ and the reality of its assessment practices. As such it provides a ‘micro’ analysis of the boundaries placed around academic and vocational ways of learning, and seeks to question such categories.

This study centres on understanding teachers' curriculum decision making (CDM) and pupils' subject choice in physical education. The curriculum reform chosen to illustrate these two central issues is Higher Grade Physical Education (HGPE), a nationally available qualification in physical education that has been available to fifth and sixth year (16 to 18 year olds) Scottish secondary pupils from 1993. The focus on teacher CDM and pupil subject choice contributes more generally to our understanding of the social construction of physical education as a school subject. The framework used to investigate the social construction of knowledge, teacher CDM and pupil subject choice is Basil Bernstein's model of the social construction of pedagogic discourse. Bernstein's three fields of knowledge production and reproduction and his notion of pedagogic discourse allowed the framing of the examination of the development, mediation and reproduction of the HGPE course. The study illustrates how the dominant model for innovation in Scottish schools continues to be external leadership by the centre and how agents operating at this level constructed HGPE as a science-based, sport-performance-oriented discourse. The findings suggest that teachers' and pupils' interpretations of the HGPE discourse are not explicit reasons for the decision to offer or study the subject but are more likely to be embedded in the context in which individual teachers work and in pupils' enjoyment and future vocation. Emerging issues that are discussed include the process of managing HGPE by the SEB and the extent to which the SEB exercised power to mandate precisely the form HGPE should take as it was implemented in secondary schools. A lack of external support in delivering HGPE, teacher de-professionalisation and de-skilling and professional development support for teachers are all identified and discussed. The study concludes with suggestions for the future construction of knowledge within the Scottish education system and ideas regarding what can be done to promote HGPE.