This study reports and discusses the impact of technical barriers on the effectiveness of professional development as related to a distance education system based course: a case study of the web world wonders environmental science learning community in Florida. The project involved 4th through 12th grade public school teachers learning how to use GPS readers, digital cameras, and Arc View software for the purpose of utilizing a Website that enabled remote Internet camera access in Florida State Parks. Under the supervision of Florida State University and the Florida Department of Education those teachers received professional development in techniques for developing lesson plans utilizing the equipment and software as stated above. Using the Concept Based Adoption Model, a description of the teacher's demographics, Levels of Use and Stages of Concern with relation to gender, age, teaching experience, and technological experience was examined. Technical barriers were identified and an explanation of how they were overcome in the process of receiving the professional development is reported.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the difference in the enjoyment, interest, perceived learning, and achievement levels of third grade students when social studies and science units were presented as interrelated subject units versus separate subject units. Eight units in social studies and science were chosen. Four of these units were selected at random to be presented as interrelated subject units and four to be presented as separate subject units. Interrelated units used the social studies or science topic as a core, and lessons in other subjects such as language arts, math, music, and art were related to this basic topic. Separate subject units focused on the particular topic of the unit and were not intentionally related to other subjects in curriculum. An attitude questionnaire and achievement test were administered as posttests after each unit. The results of the tests for matched pairs indicated a significant difference in the levels of enjoyment, interest, perceived learning, and achievement for the two types of units. It was concluded that the 28 third grade students taught using interrelated subject units showed a significantly higher level of enjoyment, interest, perceived learning, and achievement than the same group when taught using separate subject units.

The purpose of this study is to determine the effects of three different types of in-service or preservice training on the attitudes of sixth-grade teachers in selected Texas school districts toward the "new" social studies. The types of preparation compared are the following: completion of a social studies methods course within the last two years, attendance at a social studies in-service training session at least three hours in length within the past year, a major or minor in one of the social science disciplines, or combinations of these. Additional variables such as age, teaching experience, classroom organization, degrees held, and textbooks being used are also considered. Three hundred twenty-four respondents from thirteen school districts completed a two-part questionnaire. Part A seeks biographical, educational, and experiential information. Part B contains thirty-nine statements about social studies education to which the participants respond on a six-point Likert-type scale. Data are treated with a one-way analysis of variance, and hypotheses are retained or rejected at the .05 level of significance. When a significant F-ratio is found on data having more than two groups, the Fisher's t for multi-type comparisons is applied to determine where the significant differences occur.

A research report submitted to the faculty of Science, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Masters of Science. 20 July 2017. / Disciplinary knowledge is recognised as teacher professional knowledge base that is central in promoting effective teaching and learning in science education. Although that is the case, in one of the South African University, that this study was conducted in, the 4th year Life sciences Pre-service teachers’ were not tested on their understanding of the disciplinary nature of their subject of specialisation. As a result, the type of disciplinary gaze that they acquired by the end of the teacher training remained unknown within the institution. Thus, this study then used a case study methodology to investigate the Pre-service teachers’ levels of understanding of the disciplinary nature of Life Sciences as a discipline. The participants of this study consisted of twenty nine 4th year Pre-service teachers’ who were enrolled for a Life sciences Bachelor of Education program and one Life sciences lecturer who was involved in teaching the subject. This research took on a qualitative approach, which yielding both qualitative and quantitative data, through the use of questionnaires as well as semi-focused interviews as research instruments. The outcomes of this study showed that, although the Pre-service teachers’ were not explicitly taught about the nature of the subject, but they still showed a satisfactory understanding of it. Although that was the case, the Pre-service teachers’ still demonstrated a fractured comprehension of the disciplinary knowledge aspects, such as the history, philosophy and the nature of science. On the other hand, the findings of this study also demonstrated that, the Pre-service teachers’ acquired an extensive gaze of understanding of Subject Matter Knowledge, which is another component of Disciplinary knowledge, and this was because, this knowledge base was explicitly taught and assessed with the teacher training program. / LG2018

Submitted by Filipe dos Santos (fsantos@pucsp.br) on 2017-07-18T12:03:26Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Rogério Albanez.pdf: 1157324 bytes, checksum: a56cb348235c64871966d4db55db48fc (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-07-18T12:03:27Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Rogério Albanez.pdf: 1157324 bytes, checksum: a56cb348235c64871966d4db55db48fc (MD5) Previous issue date: 2017-06-22 / The school evasion factor, historically, occurs at all levels and types of education, causing social, economic, political, academic and financial damages to all those committed to education. The evasion phenomenon in universities has caused great disquiet in general. Failure to complete an undergraduate degree is detrimental to the student, the university and the community. This study examined both the profiles of the students that chose to take the Accounting Science degree at the Adventist University Center of São Paulo-UNASP, Campus São Paulo, and the reasons that led them to give up finishing their degree. The aim of this study was to call the university’s attention to the need to detect adjustments or changes necessary to better identify the factors that contribute to students' dissatisfaction related to the Accounting Sciences degree, establishing the reasons that led them to give up, such as their disinterest in the degree itself, and to demonstrate what the university is doing or could do, for example, to assign more qualified professors to teach the degree’s core courses, in order to avoid or reduce the occurrence of evasion. The research method used to obtain the necessary data was qualitative analysis, presenting references of other researches on the evasion factor in two perspectives: first, looking at the evasion phenomenon in several undergraduate courses at different universities in Brazil and second, looking at the event focusing exclusively on the Accounting Sciences degree at several universities scattered throughout the country. To complete the analysis, questionnaires were applied to the evaded students and to UNASP’s Accounting Sciences’ degree coordinator. The research showed that the major cause of evasion is the economic-financial factor. The lack of motivation and disillusionment with the degree was another very important factor, followed by other personal, institutional reasons and then others, such as health reasons / A evasão escolar, historicamente, ocorre em todos os graus e tipos de ensino. A evasão no ensino superior, diante do número de discentes que abandonam os cursos de graduação antes da sua conclusão, gera detrimento para o discente, para a instituição e para a comunidade. Este estudo examinou os perfis dos alunos que escolheram o curso de Ciências Contábeis no Centro Universitário Adventista de São Paulo, campus São Paulo, os motivos que os levaram a desistir e a compreensão do coordenador do curso sobre o assunto. Dado que o curso de Ciências Contábeis figura entre os quatro cursos em número de matrícula, de ingressantes e de evadidos, os objetivos deste trabalho foram obter dados para despertar à instituição a necessidade de detectar ajustes ou mudanças necessárias para amenizar os efeitos que contribuem com a evasão dos alunos do curso, especificando identificar seu perfil e os motivos da renúncia, o desinteresse pelo curso, demonstrar se a instituição possui política de contenção da evasão e demonstrar qual a situação atual, perante a formação acadêmica, dos alunos desistentes. Para isso, foi questionado quais as reais motivações que levaram o aluno a desistir do curso de Ciências Contábeis do Centro Universitário Adventista de São Paulo, campus São Paulo, e o que a instituição tem realizado para amenizar a evasão. Foi utilizado o método de pesquisa estudo de caso para a obtenção dos dados, empregando o método de análise qualitativa, apresentando referências de pesquisas sobre a evasão em duas perspectivas: abordando a evasão nos cursos de graduação em diferentes instituições de ensino e a outra, abordando o evento no curso de Ciências Contábeis, em várias instituições de curso superior e, completando a análise, foram aplicados questionários para os alunos evadidos e para o coordenador do curso. A pesquisa resultou que são várias as causas da fuga dos discentes do curso, como o fator econômico-financeiro, a falta de motivação e a desilusão com o curso seguido por motivos de ordem pessoal, institucional e até aqueles que ocorrem sem interferências do aluno

This dissertation study examined how teachers in four newcomer schools conceptualized and implemented social studies education for newcomer Latino/a youth. I designed this multi-site, collective case study to examine the perspectives and decision making of four social studies teachers' enacted pedagogy for Latino/a newcomer students. I documented how social studies teachers (U.S. History and Global History) were teaching Latino/a newcomer youth within urban newcomer high schools through the research question: how do four secondary teachers conceptualize and implement social studies education for newcomer Latino/a youth? As evidenced in their culturally and linguistically relevant pedagogy, teachers in this study provided constant support, encouragement, and opportunity for Latino/a newcomer students to succeed academically, and encouraged active civic engagement by using students' cultural, linguistic, and civic knowledge and experiences as central to their pedagogy. I analyzed the findings within and across four case studies to develop an emerging grounded theory of culturally and linguistically relevant citizenship education. This developing grounded theory analyzed the intersections of culturally relevant pedagogy, linguistically responsive teaching, and active and engaged citizenship. These intersections and cross-case analysis of the four teachers' social studies pedagogy for newcomer Latino/a students developed five principles of culturally and linguistically relevant citizenship education. These principles included: pedagogy of community, pedagogy of success, pedagogy of making cross-cultural connections, pedagogy of building a language of social studies, and pedagogy of community-based, participatory citizenship. This study has the potential to add to and expand on the discourse regarding social studies pedagogy for culturally and linguistically diverse students (Ladson-Billings, 1995b; Lucas and Villegas, 2011), newcomer schools (Short and Boyson, 2000), English Language Learners (Cruz and Thornton, 2009), and citizenship education for newcomer youth (Salinas, 2006). Possibilities for future research might include examining how Latino/a immigrant students' cultural and linguistic experiences influence their perceptions of social studies and how they conceptualize citizenship. Furthermore, additional research might also explore how the findings in this study may be used to develop a more culturally and linguistically responsive teacher education program, create professional development opportunities for in-service teachers, and examine how elementary teachers and teachers in rural/suburban contexts conceptualize their social studies pedagogy for immigrant youth.

This study examined the impact of an inquiry based Next Generation Science Standard aligned science unit on elementary students' understanding and application of the eight Science and Engineering Practices and their relation in building student problem solving skills. The study involved 44 second grade students and three participating classroom teachers. The treatment consisted of a school district developed Second Grade Earth Science unit: What is happening to our playground? that was taught at the beginning of the school year. Quantitative results from a Likert type scale pre and post survey and from student content knowledge assessments showed growth in student belief of their own abilities in the science classroom. Qualitative data gathered from student observations and interviews performed at the conclusion of the Earth Science unit further show gains in student understanding and attitudes. This study adds to the existing literature on the importance of standard aligned, inquiry based science curriculum that provides time for students to engage in science practices.

Instructional time for social studies in elementary classrooms has decreased since the passage of Goals 2000 and No Child Left Behind, with content contracted to align with reading goals. Consequently, opportunities for preservice teachers to observe and teach social studies lessons have diminished. This qualitative multiple case study examines the practices that preservice teachers develop and apply in making decisions concerning social studies curriculum. Three elementary level preservice teachers who had, or were earning, another degree in addition to their degree in education were participants in the study. The study offers insights into three research questions: 1) How do preservice elementary teachers construct an understanding of the teachings of social studies? 2) What knowledge, beliefs, and attitudes do preservice teachers draw upon as they make decisions about social studies teaching? and 3) How do preservice teachers reflect upon and revise their own teaching of social studies? Data from student-produced texts, interviews, classroom observations, a focus group, and researcher memos were analyzed using an inductive approach drawing on Charmaz's Constructing Grounded Theory (2010) and situational analysis (Clarke,2005). Five factors intersected for each participant in constructing their understandings of social studies instruction: academic background, learning preferences, beliefs and attitudes regarding education, a conception of the teacher's role, and aspects of college coursework in education. The participants' academic background, knowledge of students' prior learning, content standards, curriculum emphasis at school sites, and beliefs about purposes for social studies shaped their decisions about social studies instruction. Each participant reflected on technical aspects of lessons primarily using descriptive language. Reflection considering multiple perspectives and the social and historical contexts for lessons occurred when the participants had academic backgrounds related to social studies fields, or when there were multiple lessons related around a topic. In these cases, reflections demonstrated greater depth and complexity. Participants' opportunities to revise lessons varied. In general, the findings suggest that when background knowledge was related to social studies fields, preservice teachers found alternative ways to approach subject matter and multiple occasions to integrate social studies. This study has implications for the coursework and practicum components of preservice teacher education. / Graduation date: 2012

As the human population increases, it becomes increasingly more important for society to understand the impact of humans on the environment. Preserving fixed resources by engaging in sustainable practices is necessary to ensure those resources are available for future generations. Since the early 1960s, policy makers and educators alike have sought to ensure that students graduate environmentally literate. Previous research has identified a multitude of barriers that limit classroom teacher’s ability to integrate environmental education into their curriculum. The purpose of this study was to investigate how teachers overcome those barriers that restrict the integration of action based environmental education into the public school classroom. This was a three case study of public high school teachers. Data were gathered for this qualitative study through observations, interviews, and the collection of documents. Constant comparative method was utilized to analyze data. The researcher conducted a within-case analysis for each case and a cross-case analysis as well. Through the use of coding, the researcher identified patterns and themes across cases. Barriers identified by participants included resources, time, and risk. The primary factors uncovered by this study, which potentially affect teacher efficacy, are personal and educational background, the availability of mentors, and support of outside agencies. The implications for policy makers and institutions of higher education that can be drawn from this study are that, through the course of teacher undergraduate and graduate education, teachers should be provided with field experiences in the area of environmental education. In addition to providing field experiences, finding ways to link teachers to outside environmentally focused agencies and mentors increases teacher efficacy by providing support and resources.

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