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<p>Canada and Indonesia are multilingual and multicultural countries. Canadian official bilingualism has been accompanied by feelings of divisiveness. In Indonesia, one official language facilitates interethnic contact. Second-language programs were established to meet economic and social communication needs in both countries. This project examines the background and linguistic and attitudinal outcomes of such programs. Aspects of second-language instruction in Ontario, Canada and South Sulawesi, Indonesia are compared, including history of the interethnic contact, status of the languages involved, teachers, classroom conditions and resources, curriculum guidelines, instructional methodology, and factors in the community. A Likert scale of orientational motivation and a social distance scale were used to assess attitudinal consequences of second-language instruction in South Sulawesi. Grade six examinations were examined to assess linguistic consequences in South Sulawesi. The results of the study suggest that Ontario methods of second-language instruction more effectively teach French than methods in South Sulawesi teach Indonesian. Successful students of Indonesian integrate frequently with members of other ethnic groups; Ontario students of French do not. In both provinces, knowledge of the new language is more important in developing attitudes than whether it was gained formally or non-formally, and knowledge was associated with perception of low social distance from outgroups. Strategies are recommended for adapting teaching methodology from Ontario for South Sulawesi. Additional components for the Ontario French as a second-language curriculum are suggested to improve attitudes.</p> / Master of Arts (MA)

The purpose of this instrumental case study was to describe the ways two elementary general music teachers participating in a teacher collaboration group (TCG) used reflective strategies in their classrooms. The following questions initially framed the case: When these two teachers engaged in reflective strategies, (1) What did they notice about their students’ performance and their own teaching practices? (2) What did they describe as the benefits and challenges of incorporating reflective strategies? and (3) What insights did they articulate as a result of their participation in a TCG? I (student investigator) invited two purposefully sampled elementary general music teachers to participate in a TCG focused on incorporating reflective strategies. In my interactions with the two teachers, I served three roles: researcher, facilitator, and colleague. The theoretical lens for this research was professional learning through collaboration. As researcher, I embraced the required tasks for this research, including studying existing literature, obtaining the necessary approvals, devising data collection tools, analyzing the data and drawing conclusions based on the data. Since I chose to conduct the research in the school district where I currently teach, I needed to be mindful of my professional relationships with all 10 of my elementary general music teacher colleagues, since the two of my elementary general music teacher colleagues participated in the TCG. Throughout the study I strove to maintain balance between my roles of researcher, facilitator and colleague as I drew on my review of research and practice literature on reflective strategies to make decisions throughout this research. To reduce over rapport during the study, I continually examined my motives for all choices, and sought to be mindful of how each choice affected research design, TCG agendas, and my colleagues’ professional responsibilities. I strove to identify sources of tensions relative to each of my roles, and remain as neutral as possible to each role during data analysis. The two teachers engaged in member checks, and I invited a critical friend with experience in qualitative research to serve as an auditor of the data. Based on my research on reflective strategies, I offered participants four reflective strategies, from which they chose one, to incorporate with a fourth grade general music class of their choice. Over seven months, the participants documented in their professional reflective journals what they noticed about their students and themselves while engaged in reflective strategies. The participants studied reflective practice independently and collaboratively. The participants completed two solo interviews and attended five group meetings. Data sources for this study were transcripts of TCG meetings and interviews, researcher’s field notes, participants’ professional reflective journals, and artifacts of student work shared with parent consent and student assent: video recorded teaching examples and students’ written classwork, both of which participants shared during TCG meetings. I studied the transcripts and professional reflective journals for emerging patterns and themes. Three themes emerged: Noticings About Students and Self, Learning About Students and Self, and Changing Attitudes and Beliefs about Teaching and Learning. The overarching theme, Sharing Experiences, served as the catalyst for participant noticing, learning, and changing. The participants reported that the use of reflective strategies designed for their elementary general music students informed their instruction and decision-making processes, and provided insights to their students’ levels of understanding. Additionally, the participants reported learning the value of reflection, both for themselves and for their students. The participants also reported that participating in the TCG as a form of collaborative professional development alleviated feelings of isolation and provided an opportunity for teachers to learn from one another in a professional environment. The research presented in this study has implications for teachers and administrators. Because of the benefits associated with engaging students in reflective strategies, teachers should consider how to include reflective opportunities appropriately as part of their instruction. Further, administrators should consider providing collaborative professional development opportunities for teachers of any subject area or grade level. The two elementary general music teachers in this research described gaining valuable insights regarding music teaching and learning by incorporating reflective strategies. Further, they valued the professional development in the form of the TCG, which developed over time and offered them an opportunity to reflect as partners who generated collective knowledge with each other as supportive peers, all while individually growing as teachers. Suggestions for future research include researching a curricular approach to implementing reflective strategies with PreKindergarten through 5th grade elementary general music students, reflective strategies elementary musical ensembles, investigating how reflective strategies relate to different approaches for teaching elementary general music, and exploring teacher collaboration groups consisting of music teachers from various grade levels or music teaching disciplines. / Music Education

Since college and university students typically vary in their utilization of student services and resources, the variance in undergraduate business student engagement levels in professional development activity was explored by this quantitative study. Professional development is defined as career-related preparation of students for entry into the professional business environment and is accomplished through coaching, workshops, mentoring, student professional organization involvement, and internships that complement the content knowledge taught in the classroom. The results of a mandatory student satisfaction survey were analyzed to identify drivers/correlates of engagement, specifically relative to participation in professional development activity at a mid-Atlantic, urban research institution with an undergraduate business school population of approximately 5,700 students. The goal was to assess the demographic, organizational and motivational drivers (using a distal to proximal flow of relevance) that serve as potential initiators of variance in engagement levels related to professional development activity. This study attempted to provide insight as to the types of students who are engaged or disengaged by examining a combination of student background characteristics, pre-college credentials, college credentials, and organizational/motivational factors. The existing literature has concentrated on identification of "good practices" leading to engagement, as well as the impact of educationally purposeful activities on the higher education experience, but has not clearly identified the precise drivers of student engagement. Academic research on undergraduate student engagement in professional development activity is even more challenging to locate and is practically non-existent. The study population consisted of 864 graduating seniors who completed the mandatory senior student satisfaction survey. Student demographic data from the University's information system as well as self-reported survey responses comprised the independent variables. This information was used to create thirty drivers of engagement categorized into five variable sets. The dependent variables, identified as behavioral indicators of engagement in student professional development activity, were derived from self-reported responses in the senior survey. A factor analysis was used to create a Total DV score relative to student engagement in professional development activity. Descriptive statistics provided a picture of each group of students. ANOVA and correlational analyses were used to determine the predictive factors (by variable sets) for professional development activity engagement (PDAE). Twenty-five of the thirty independent variables produced significant correlations (.000) spanning the five variable sets thereby indicating that multiple factors are ultimately involved in this complex model of student engagement in professional development activity. / Educational Administration

In response to increasing evidence of the need for better preparation for those teaching in higher education, more and more professional development programs are being established to provide faculty and future faculty with pedagogical expertise. The aim of this study was to inform the development and improvement of such programs by analyzing participants' experiences in a teaching in higher education preparation program and developing a conceptual model of motivation for teaching in higher education. Fifteen graduate student instructors who completed a teaching in higher education certificate program at a large, urban university were interviewed using a narrative approach. An initial model based on Personal Investment Theory (Maehr and Braskamp, 1986) was further elaborated on, with the resultant model highlighting the dynamic interplay of teachers' beliefs, purposes, self-perceptions and teaching strategies. The analysis using the model revealed four distinct profiles reflecting diverse motivations and experiences in the professional development (PD) program. These profiles were labeled "The Unchanged," "The Practice Seekers," "The Enlightened," and "The Integrated." The analysis using the model also revealed an array of themes that highlight similarities and differences in participants' construction of their PD experience. These similarities and differences provide insight into the motivational processes that facilitate the formation of teaching identity. Themes that emerged fell into five categories: diversity in self-perceptions, individual differences in component emphasis, variability in utilization of action possibilities, variability in alignment, and variability in change. This emergent model can provide a conceptual tool for future research, as well as a guide for evaluating and designing effective PD for graduate student instructors, and potentially faculty. / Educational Psychology

The professional development school (PDS) has had a recent resurgence in teacher education. Professional development schools were designed to reform teacher education programs and revitalize K-12 education. The purpose of this study was to evaluate a professional development school: The School Teacher Education Partnership (STEP) at Elizabeth City State University (ECSU). STEP is a partnership between Elizabeth City State University and one elementary school in each of three participating school districts -- Edenton-Chowan, Elizabeth City-Pasquotank, and Gates -- in North Carolina. The study took place over two years. Participants from the 1998-2001 school years were the primary informants. Data were collected through extended interviews. Documentary data and end-of-the-year qualitative evaluations were used to substantiate interview data. The constant comparative method of Maykut & Morehouse (1994) was used to analyze the data. Data were unitized, coded, grouped, categorized, and compared for patterns and themes. The results of this evaluation were strong enough to recommend that a year-long internship be required for all prospective teachers at the university. The STEP graduates come from the program with strong pedagogical skills. The students are prepared to begin working with children from the first day of teaching. They can manage classes well handling routines with little difficulty. Mentor teachers were found to be primary contributors to the development of new teachers, and they are paid little for their efforts. It is recommended that they be paid an amount commensurate with their effort and contributions to the development of new teachers. This compensation should be an integral part of the budgets of the state, local, or university agencies responsible for the preparation of teachers. / Ed. D.