No description available.

A mini dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Education in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of Master of Environmental Education In the Mathematics, Science & Technology Education Department at the University of Zululand, South Africa, 2008. / The study sought to explore the impact that exemplary curriculum materials called "We Care" had made on the classroom practice of the recipients, namely educators in rural areas. It also explored the ways in which the recipients put the materials to use. The materials in question introduced the educators to the practice of integrating Environmental Education (EE) into the teaching of the Natural Sciences. The materials also provided suggestions with regard to learner-centred actrvrty-based ideas for learning programme development Teaching experiences of educators using "We Care" were recorded mainly by means of videotaped lessons, which were transcribed and analyzed. Results showed that all the educators found the materials informative and interesting to use. "We Care" materials generated collegiality among the educators and inspired them to work together and share ideas. Analysis of the videotaped lessons, however, revealed that the participants often lacked adequate content to explain science concepts clearly. Group work was also handled poorly, with the result that the objectives of group activities were not being achieved. A general weakness in handling the outcomes-based approach was evident, despite the participants' expressed conviction that "We Care" had helped them to demystify OBE. The study's value manifested in the identification of good practice among the participants and in the opportunity that it provided to discuss exemplary practice.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Delaware, 2009. / Principal faculty advisor: Vijay K. Shanker, Dept. of Computer & Information Sciences. Includes bibliographical references.

The study was conducted in the Mthatha District, Mqanduli area, and it sought to enquire about the role of junior secondary school principals in supporting Grade R teachers in order to make teaching and learning in the Grade R classes effective. The researcher has noticed with concern the poor conditions of Grade R classes in the schools and felt a need for proper support. She felt the principal could champion the concept of support better, in his capacity as a manager in the school. Studies in Early Childhood Development have been done, and they pertained to all aspects of child development, parental support etc., but studies that view support from a managerial perspective in Mthatha District are scarce. Under quantitative research design, a survey research method was employed to collect a large portion of the data. A questionnaire consisting of closed and open ended questions was used in order to collect data from the Grade R teachers. Open ended questions were used in order to get a broader view and perceptions. Comprehensive sampling was used in this study because the whole population fell into the sample. All ethical considerations were observes and after receipt of permission to conduct research in the schools, a questionnaire was distributed personally to all the schools in the sample. Data was analyzed by means of the SPSS. Some of the findings identified in the study pertained to: the need for material support including good infrastructure, poor communication between principal and Grade R teacher, scarce meetings specifically for Grade R. The individual findings, together with the implications were discussed in relation to the research questions. The researcher recommended that technical support should be attended to and the principal must communicate frequently with the Grade R teacher. Financial limitations and negative attitudes from some principals were the major limitations the researcher encountered.

This thesis is the study of experiences of a group of mainstream secondary pupils identified as having additional support needs within the terms of the Education (Additional Support For Learning ) (Scotland) Act (2004). This means that they have been categorised as having entitlements to whatever support they require to ensure that they can attain good educational outcomes. Prior to the 2004 legislation, practices were based on categorisation of such pupils into separate, often segregated, provision which reflected assumptions about their restricted potential. The 2004 legislation is part of a policy agenda concerned with social justice and equity of educational provision for all pupils. It requires that all barriers to learning are removed for each individual pupil. Such a policy shift, and the move towards an inclusive person-centred approach, seem consistent with Scottish education as it is widely regarded, that is, with a strong tradition of, and a commitment to, egalitarianism. However, there is research which also suggests that Scottish education has been, and continues to be, meritocratic and with a strong focus on academic attainment, and that the belief in the tradition of egalitarianism, which is now regarded as a myth, can still influence perception and policy. It has also been argued that the neo-liberal reforms of the public services since the 1980s have narrowed teachers‟ work, led to a focus on its measurable aspects and led to less time being available for other areas of work, including supporting non-academic learning and attainment. In this thesis I discuss how the influence of the „myth‟, a tradition of meritocracy, and a performativity focus on attainment, shape teachers understandings and practices as they are required to reconcile them with a concurrent policy agenda which has a focus on social inclusion and equity of educational opportunity. To enable the voices of pupils and their teachers to be heard, I use semi-structured interviews and an interpretivist approach to study the experiences and attitudes of 8 teachers and 17 pupils in 2 comprehensive schools in a Scottish local authority. Through doing this I identify factors which might prevent teachers from developing inclusive approaches and support for learning practices which are helpful and acceptable to pupils. I also consider any apparent tensions between a person-centred inclusive policy agenda and a tradition of meritocracy. I found that pupils were generally positive about their experience of learning and identified practices they thought would be both helpful and acceptable to them: peer working; teachers mediating learning through discussion/questioning; work which was interesting to them and/or relevant to life beyond school. There was also a degree of consensus that difficulties associated with the reading/writing tasks they were required to do could be barriers to fully accessing the curriculum. The study also found that the teachers interviewed showed a commitment to provide support to pupils with additional support needs and that they provided a range of in-class arrangements to achieve this. However, they seemed also to be influenced by academic traditions/assumptions and felt that what they were able to do was limited by the agenda created by national examination requirements and it was that which drove the curriculum. The study concludes that the practices and power relations in schools are influenced by the conservative thinking which characterises Scottish education, that these practices and power relations can be oppressive and disempowering to teachers and pupils and that pupils are still labelled, sometimes segregated and treated differently from their peers. It also emerged that while there are no real opportunities for pupils to express their views and challenge the identities ascribed to them, when they are given that opportunity they can have well formed views about their education and what changes to existing practice would better help them to improve their attainment and develop useful skills. Not all of the pupils did express such views, and this may link to effect of the power relations in schools. Of those who did express views about what they would like to see change, the changes they identified seem to be generally possible within the pedagogical and curriculum framework changes as suggested in Curriculum for Excellence documents. However, given the findings of this study about power relations and the persistence of academic traditions and assumptions, it is relevant to note that these changes in themselves will require alterations to existing in-school power relations, working arrangements and conceptualisations of what constitutes educational success and how it is measured.

The new outcomes based education (OBE) in the form of the Revised National Curriculum Statements (RNCS, 2002) advocates for the use of contexts in the teaching and learning of mathematics. The motivation for this advocacy is the expectation of the promotion of understanding of the subject. Such expectations however cannot be achievable without consideration of factors such as what contexts are appropriate for use in the teaching and learning of mathematics, how the contexts have to be used in order to promote understanding and more importantly how are teachers involved in this process. The study explores the ways in which a Grade 7 teacher selects contexts in the learning support materials or in any other source for use in order to promote understanding of the concept of variable among learners. It draws on socio-cultural theories and is underpinned by the notion that understanding of a concept presupposes and is presupposed by the formation of the concept. The research method employed was a case study and data was mainly collected through interviews as well as materials that were availed by the teacher. The following three key issues emerged from the study and were taken up for discussion: a) what does it take to make the transition from context to mathematics in terms of the promotion of the understanding of the concept of variable? b) to what extent were the materials selected by the teacher adequate to deal with issues of transition from context to mathematics in terms of the promotion of the understanding of the concept of variable? and c) what possibilities were available for the teacher to use context in order to promote understanding of the concept of variable? This study further explores the extent to which the notions of mathematisation and transition from context to mathematics may be used as the means by which the selection and use of contexts in the learning and teaching of the concept of variable may facilitate the promotion of understanding of the concept variable.

The current trend of learning is towards distant learning. Using distance learners¡¦ learning portfolios recorded by Web Site can help teachers understanding the learning state of students. Teachers can encourage or supervise students through Email based on their different behavior. Eventually, we hope to enhance students¡¦ participation and interest when they are attending distant learning. We develop learning support mechanisms using portfolios in order to help teacher understanding the learning status of students conveniently and easy to apply mechanisms in distant learning environment. Finally, we will assess the effects of mechanisms to prove it can help students positively. The results will drawing in two parts. First, students accepted encouragement and supervision from teachers were enthusiastically than students don¡¦t accepted encouragement and supervision from teachers when attended each unit of test and synchronous conference. Second, according the questionnaire appears both groups of students agreed that teacher should encourage or supervise them according their learning behavior. In a word, students really need help from teacher at the right moment. And our research have proved that distant learning environment need provide convenient mechanisms for teachers.

No description available.

No description available.

This study explored the lived experience of being an occupational therapy student with additional support requirements. Individuals with disabilities have the right to access education and have unique skills and attributes which are highly desirable within Health and Social Care professions. The number of students with disabilities undertaking Health and Social Care programmes is increasing and Universities have sought to improve facilities, resources and support for these students. However, Occupational Therapy education which is truly inclusive remains elusive (Jung et al, 2008). No previous research exploring this phenomenon has been completed within the United Kingdom. Two small scale studies in USA (Velde et al, 2005) and in Canada (Jung et al, 2014) have been previous published, alongside a number of autobiographical descriptions of individual’s personal experiences of OT education from those with disabilities (Archer, 1999; Bennett, 1989; Guitard and Lirette, 2005; Sivanesan, 2003). However, the age and predominant international context limits applicability within the UK. Unlike previous studies, Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) was used to investigate the phenomenon of being an Occupational Therapy student with a disability, from the individual’s unique perspective. Viewing each individual participant as a unique occupational being allowed me to reveal findings which have been previously unidentified and unexplored. This study illuminated a journey that all participants experienced as they engaged in the occupation of studying to become an Occupational Therapist. The journey was described by two participants using the metaphor ‘a rollercoaster’ and this became the overarching theme. Other themes generated from individual participant journeys, as described in their own words, were ‘like a bull at a gate’, ‘that was when the bubble burst’, ‘heal thy self’ and the ‘world is my oyster’. The findings indicated that there was a therapeutic benefit of studying to become an Occupational Therapist for those who had successfully completed the programme. Whilst never the original intention of the research, when interpreting the findings, I was drawn to how the concepts within Model of Human Occupation (MOHO) (Kielhofner, 1985) were evident within each participant’s journey and thus applied MOHO to each individual. It is recommended that further research is undertaken to explore if the findings of this study are only applicable to those who participated in the study or if studying Occupational Therapy is indeed therapeutic and the Model of Human Occupation is applicable to all students who study OT with or without additional support requirements.