Abstract This single, embedded case study focused on educators’ experiences of educational change as they adopted, implemented, and sustained a one-to-one computing innovation over 20 years. The purpose of the study was to explore the innovativeness, the capacity of a school community to take on change for continuous educational improvement over time. Through interviews and focus groups with administrators, teachers, students, and graduates, observations of current classroom practices, and archival data, the study provides an understanding of how individuals experienced change and how a school sustained change over an exceptionally long period of time. Data analysis revealed multiple rationales for the implementation of one-to-one computing, including the development of a constructivist environment, the empowerment of women, preparation of students for college and the 21st century work force, and the need to keep the school’s educational program on the “cutting-edge.” The study of this individual school community suggests the importance of a strong educational philosophy, flexibility of implementation, an environment that encourages risk-taking, and collegiality. The study also demonstrates that change occurred on a continuum and continued to progress as hardware, software, and the Internet evolved, and as faculty became more knowledgeable of the application of the program to teaching and learning.

CoordenaÃÃo de AperfeiÃoamento de Pessoal de NÃvel Superior / nÃo hà / Nossa pesquisa teve como objetivo central compreender historicamente a elaboraÃÃo da Reforma Educacional de 1971 atravÃs da Lei 5692/71, alÃm de contextualizÃ-la a partir de sua implementaÃÃo dentro do Estado do CearÃ. Para tal finalidade foi feita uma pesquisa que envolveu personalidades cearenses envolvidas diretamente com o tema ligados aos setores pÃblicos, alÃm de entidades classistas ligadas ao segmento empresarial, em funÃÃo da Ãnfase profissionalizante e voltada para o mercado de trabalho, aludidas à reforma. O trabalho tÃm um sentido interpretativo a partir de fontes jornalÃsticas, documentos oficiais alÃm de um leque de autores que abordam este tema. Percebi que a reforma de 1971 chega ao Cearà com poucas possibilidades de ser efetivada em funÃÃo das condiÃÃes precÃrias vivenciadas pela estrutura educacional cearense, alÃm da reduzida participaÃÃo efetiva dos segmentos empresariais nas discussÃes de tais medidas, jà que seriam os maiores beneficiÃrios dessa nova realidade. AlÃm disso o contexto histÃrico que fez parte de sua elaboraÃÃo, a forma como os principais interlocutores do governo tratavam o tema educaÃÃo, foram analisados e interpretados apontando um forte envolvimento ideolÃgico que caracterizava os anos de 1970, refletidos nas questÃes educacionais abordadas a partir da lei em questÃo, perÃodo, por sinal, onde a repressÃo aos movimentos de contestaÃÃo a ditadura militar sÃo mais intensos. / Abstract Our research had as objective central office historically to understand the elaboration of the Educational Reformation of 1971 through Law 5692/71, beyond inside contextualizar it from its implementation of the State of the CearÃ. For such purpose a research was made that directly involved pertaining to the state of Cearà personalities with the subject on to the public sectors, beyond on class representative entities to the enterprise segment, in function of the emphasis professionalizing and directed toward the work market, alluded to the reform. The work has an interpretative direction from journalistic sources, official documents beyond a fan of authors who approach this subject. I perceived that the 1971 reform it arrives at the Cearà with few possibilities of being accomplished in function of the precarious conditions lived deeply by the pertaining to the state of Cearà educational structure, beyond the reduced participation it accomplishes of the enterprise segments in the quarrels of such measures, since they would be the beneficiary greaters of this new reality. Moreover the historical context that was part of its elaboration, the form as the main interlocutors of the government treated the subject education, they had been analyzed and interpreted pointing a strong ideological envolvement that characterized the years of 1970, reflected in the boarded educational questions from the law in question,

Diploma thesis delivers a global education methodology for schoolchildren, designed for teachers and including materials for students. Suggestions are based on theoretical knowledge centred on the comparison of education systems in developed and developing countries, focusing on the Czech Republic and Namibia respectively. The theoretical part of the thesis is the process of developing the concept of global education via a Czech concept known by the acronym GRV. The thesis further develops the theoretical basis of the GRV concept by establishing criteria using suitable GRV material. It also considers the current state of GRV in context of primary education in Czech schools and opportunities for more effective implementation in the Czech educational system.

There have been numerous calls for the radical transformation of public education in the United States. Reform initiatives are fuelled by the need to prepare students to meet the challenges of the networked knowledge society. This thesis examines the shaping of school culture within two public non-charter high schools, in different regions of the United States and with different socioeconomic characteristics, that are implementing the "New Technology" (or "New Tech") model of education: Pacific Coast High, a well-established New Tech school, and Midwest High, a school that recently transitioned to the model and is still in the process of culture change. This rapidly expanding school reform network includes 168 schools in the United States and 7 international sites in Australia. The New Tech Network, the organisation that provides training and support for these schools, explicitly emphasises the goal of changing the culture of education. They describe themselves as a network of schools that promotes a culture of trust, respect, and responsibility and uses project-based learning and "smart use" of technology to redefine teaching and learning. I employed an ethnographic multisite case study design to gain an understanding of the everyday experiences and practices of teachers, students and school leaders as they work through the process of implementing and maintaining the New Tech model. Fieldwork included six and a half months of participant observation of secondary classrooms, school meetings, professional development sessions, and New Tech training conferences as well as semi-structured interviews with teachers, students, and administrators. My analysis provides an understanding of the influence of local context, including historical background (local and national) and economic and political structures. The research findings indicate that a deliberate focus on 'culture-building', with particular values like trust, respect and responsibility, underpin and shape relationships, behaviours and educational practices, including the extensive use of ICTs. A multi-faceted approach to socialisation and enculturation, which includes extensive peer-to-peer support, is involved in inculcating values and shaping behaviours and practices. The New Tech model shifts the focus of education from a primarily individualist competitive endeavour (reflecting the broad cultural orientations of modern society in the United States) to a more collectivist approach, with students working in collaborative groups supported by the use of ICTs. Schools operate as learning communities with collaborative partnerships with the wider community. Pacific Coast High is an exemplar for the model in its fully implemented form, while Midwest High's transition to the model has been fraught with tensions as they navigate numerous context-specific challenges. I argue that real reform requires an intentional effort to change the culture of education and that pedagogy and culture have to necessitate the use of ICTs to more fully integrate them into the education process. I characterise the culture I observed in New Tech schools, particularly at Pacific Coast, as an 'ICT-facilitating school culture' with (1) a collaborative project-based focus and encouragement of students to communicate and find information themselves which pushes them to use ICTs, (2) a system of cultural values that, when internalised, operates as a means of social control, keeping students on task as they work independently and collaboratively, using ICTs, including social networking sites, and (3) an ideal classroom layout and technology infrastructure that facilitates the use of ICTs. I characterise the New Tech Network of schools as a revitalization movement, addressing the needs of a changing society by changing the culture of education.