For about the last decade, education reformers have stressed the role of teachers in translating policy reforms into classroom practice. In Lebanon, the 1997 revised English curriculum, which follows learner-centred teaching, has as one of its objectives to enable learners to communicate effectively in English. To meet such an objective, the reformers called for the use of cooperative learning (CL) as it maximises the learners' exposure to meaningful input and output in a democratic, cooperative environment. However, to date a lot of the graduates from Lebanese Public High Schools (LPHS), unlike their counterparts in the private sector, are not proficient enough in English to produce one complete sentence in that foreign language. The aim of this study was therefore to investigate the extent to which the conceptions of teaching that LPHS teachers of English as a foreign language (EFL) have, in general, as well as of CL in particular, are congruent with the curricular reforms and hence implemented into their classroom practice, and thereby investigating one possible reason for their graduates' low proficiency in English. Using a case study design, the researcher examined six Lebanese EFL teachers, purposively sampled, in four LPHS in one city in South Lebanon. Data, collected through observation, interviews, document analysis, and a researcher diary, were compared to ensure credibility. These data, which were analysed thematically, yielded the categories and sub-categories which constitute the results of this research. Major findings showed that (a) there were incongruities between teachers' reported conceptions and their practice; while their reported conceptions lie within learner-centred teaching, their practice, influenced by their learning experiences as language learners as well as their school culture and professional context, was more traditional and teacher-centred, (b) CL was almost absent in their practice, and in only a few occasions were group or pair work activities employed, (c) their teacher preparation was mostly theoretical and traditional, (d) the minimal support provided to EFL teachers in their professional context and the incompatible school culture with the curricular reforms reflected negatively on their practice. Conclusions were drawn as follows: (1) teachers' conceptions of teaching were mostly incongruent with the curricular reforms, and hence these reforms were not translated into the teachers' classroom practice properly, (2) the strong influence of the participants' images of their memorable teachers as language learners, coupled with the participants' inadequate understanding of learner-centred teaching, made the participants equate their friendly attitudes to students with learner-centred teaching, (3) the absence of communication and collaboration between teacher education programme, curriculum designers, and LPHS led to inadequate teacher training, (4) their poor teacher preparation and the inappropriate school culture and context in terms of the physical environment, orientation, and preparedness reinforced the teachers' more established conceptions of what constitute good teaching and discouraged the participants' few attempts to implement traces of these curricular reforms in their classes, and (5) the poor implementation of curricular reforms and the reliance on more traditional teaching, which focuses on form, accuracy, and memorisation, were hence one possible factor responsible for LPHS graduates' low proficiency. The researcher suggested necessary pedagogical implications that are likely to improve the implementation of curricular reforms in LPHS, the most important of which were (a) adjusting the reforms to be in harmony with LPHS professional context as well as culture, (b) more coordination and communication between teacher training programmes, schools, and curriculum designers, and (c) revising the teacher education programme and upgrading teachers' qualifications. Finally, the thesis ends with recommendations for further research.

The aim of the thesis is to study how Hezbollah has accommodated a system that it initially rejects but endorses for strategic purposes. It is suggested that Hizbullah's strategic undertaking involves a certain tension between making compromises and concessions while also sticking to its radical pledge to Khomeinism and the Islamic revolution. Did accommodation imply that Hezbollah abstained from these radical impulses while submitting to the social and political Lebanese fabric of pluralism? The contention of this thesis is that Hezbollah has operated in a way that combines its revolutionary pledge to the Islamic revolution with its accommodating strategies to the Lebanese state. That is, the national path chosen by Hezbollah should not be seen as the movement’s surrendering of an Islamist objective to the constraints of the nationstate, or the confessional system, inherently despised by the Hezbollah. Instead, Hezbollah's Islamist project should be understood as  a strategy of resistance which is situated on various levels, and it is argued that the movement has successfully combined this project of resistance with a strategy of accommodation to the Lebanese state. A crucial question to be answered is, resistance against what? The thesis suggests that Hezbollah's struggle against the Israeli occupation of Lebanon should not only be understood as an effort to liberate the land but also to promote a broader awakening of defiance that was part of the Ayatollah Khomeini's vision of the Islamic revolution. The thesis combines a theoretical framework of Frantz Fanon and Antonio Gramsci to understand how Hezbollah tries reproduce its pledge to this revolution with an accommodation to the Lebanese state.

Thèse--Paris. / Includes bibliographical references.

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The present study is divided into two parts. The first part examines the performance of Lebanese students in public and private schools in Lebanon in 8th grade using the TIMSS 2007 data. The effects of students’ dispositions and teacher characteristics on the performance of students in public and private schools are also studied. Results indicate that private school students in Lebanon perform better than public schools students in each mathematics content and cognitive domain in TIMSS 2007. Having a positive affect towards mathematics is positively related to students’ achievement in both public and private schools. Self-confidence has a positive relationship to students’ achievement too in public and private schools; and the relationship is stronger in private schools. Most of the teacher characteristics have little or no relationship to students’ achievement except for teachers’ age and teachers’ gender. On average, students with older teachers and female teachers usually perform better. The second study examines the mathematics performance in TIMSS 2007 of 8th grade students in seven Arab countries: Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Syria, and Tunisia. The effects of positive affect towards mathematics, valuing mathematics, self-confidence in learning mathematics and some teacher characteristics on mathematics achievement are studied for each country. The results show that Data & Chance and Number are two mathematics content areas in which most of the seven countries have weaknesses. Some of the countries performed better in Reasoning than in Knowing or Applying. In all the countries, positive affect towards mathematics, valuing mathematics, and self-confidence were positively related to students’ mathematics performance. Neither teacher age, years of experience, degree, nor certification had any noteworthy relationship with students’ achievement in all seven countries. Students with female teachers scored better than students with male teachers in Bahrain and Lebanon. In the other countries, students with female teachers and students with male teachers had similar performances. Policy makers should find ways to increase students’ positive affect towards mathematics, how much students value mathematics, and students’ self-confidence in learning mathematics.

"Kānat bi-al-aṣl dirāsah akādīmīyah li-nayl shahādat al-duktūrāh al-Lubnānīyah (duktūrāh dawlah)"--Introd. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 430-439).

Thesis (M.A. in Security Studies (Middle East, South Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa))--Naval Postgraduate School, June 2009. / Thesis Advisor(s): Hafez, Mohammed ; Boylouny, Anne Marie. "June 2009." Description based on title screen as viewed on July 13, 2009. DTIC Identifiers: Hezbollah, Hizbullah, political integration, social movement theory, Lebanese Shia, Shiite Muslims, Imam Sayyid Musa Al-Sadr, PLO (Palestine Liberation Organization), radicalization, Arab-Israeli War, Al Nakba, Six Day War, IDF (Israeli Defense Forces), Cairo Agreement, Islamic fundamentalism, social movement theory. Author(s) subject terms: Hezbollah, Hizbullah, Lebanon, Political Integration, Social Movement Theory. Includes bibliographical references (p. 55-61). Also available in print.

Thesis (M.A. in National Security Affairs)--Naval Postgraduate School, Sept. 2004. / Thesis Advisor(s): Anne Marie Baylouny. Includes bibliographical references (p. 81-86). Also available online.