This study explored if there are differing beliefs and attitudes regarding working with students of multicultural backgrounds based on the content area specialties (i.e. biology, chemistry, Earth science and physics) of in-service secondary science teachers. The study was mixed methods and conducted in two parts. The first part focused on the use of quantitative statistical analysis to review the results of 152 respondents to a 54 Likert questions on the Survey on Multiculturalism in the Science Classroom (SMSC). The statistical analysis was followed up with qualitative analysis of interviews with 12 in-service science teachers representing the different content areas. Quantitative findings indicated that biology and Earth science teachers demonstrated similar patterns of responses in terms of comparative statistical analysis, network correlation diagrams, and general responses to the Likert items from the SMSC. Of the four content area groups, physics teachers demonstrated the greatest difference in their responses regarding multiculturalism. The results also showed that the beliefs and attitudes of chemistry teachers were correlated with those of physics teachers; this was not the case for biology teachers and Earth science teachers. Themes emerging from a qualitative analysis of the interviews included the following: a) In-service teachers have received little formalized training in regard to working with multicultural students; and b) Differences in teacher beliefs and attitudes reported in this study could be the result of diminishing representation of students from multicultural backgrounds in the different sciences, particularly as students move through a traditional progression from biology, to Earth science, to chemistry, to physics.

This dissertation discusses the development of alternative science curriculum materials for a secondary schooling context where English, the medium of instruction, is a second language for both teachers and students. The research is located in an interpretative ethnographic framework and the data gathered during the classroom-based trialing of the materials highlights the vital role of language in the teaching and learning of school science. An interactive reading model coupled with a discourse approach to text analysis explores some of the language difficulties which black students experience with their science textbooks. That many students fail to develop adequate reading strategies is identified as lying at the heart of many learning problems. It is suggested that the key to comprehension is instruction from a base of more accessible text materials. Furthermore, although science practical work does not automatically advance students' knowledge and understanding, relevant and contextualised learning activities do equip students to become more self-directed and reflective learners of science.

The purpose of this study is to show the development of the motion picture program as a teaching aid in South Marshall School, Marshall, Texas, to determine the value of the motion pictures in the social-studies program, with special emphasis upon learning and retention of facts and general information at the third- and sixth-grade levels, and to induce all teachers of the faculty to use the motion picture as a tool for a happier and more meaningful learning experience for boys and girls.

This investigation sought to determine how seventh-grade social studies teachers perceive TAAS objectives for social studies, language arts, and mathematics and how they apply them in the classroom. A detailed questionnaire was submitted to fifty teachers in the Dallas metropolitan area; a 72 percent. return was received. Though teachers expressed a favorable attitude toward emphasizing the higher-level thinking objectives, many indicated that their lesson plans and teaching methods have remained unchanged in the past year. The data suggests that teachers want and need additional training and teaching resources to satisfy the call for incorporating performance-based assessment into the classroom curriculum. TAAS standards cannot drive the intended curriculum improvements without a model for reorienting instructional practices.

published_or_final_version / Education / Master / Master of Education

Studies have shown that most teachers in South Africa have no background in Environmental Education (EE), have not received pre-service training in EE and very little teacher education has taken place in EE. The Revised National Curriculum Statements emphasise the infusion of EE in all learning areas. There is, however, a problem whether there is a need for professional development of teachers for effective EE. The main aim of this study is to enable teachers to acquire knowledge and skills to infuse EE in all learning areas. The study gathered data through literature review from primary and secondary sources. The questionnaire was developed as a research tool and was sampled to 216 Tshwane North District Office teachers. The collected data are analysed by using the frequency tables indicating percentage of respondents in each category. The study recommends the professional development of teachers for effective implementation of EE in schools. / Educational Studies / M.Ed.

Learners’ Physical Science performance in South Africa has been under discussion for several years, the challenge being that it has been exacerbated by continuous changes in the curriculum. Systems that have been put in place have yielded insufficient satisfactory solutions to both underperformance in the subject and sustainable good performance. Although interventions by curriculum policymakers have been ineffective, the issue at hand remains that teachers need to implement good teaching practices in order to ensure that all learners receive quality education. Physical Science teachers are custodians of a subject that may address scarce skills in the education system, so the quality of teaching must be optimised. Teachers need to implement intervention processes put in place by other stakeholders to reduce the negative perceptions that most people have about Physical Science. This study investigates how various factors related to the quality of teachers may affect the performance of Grade 12 learners in this subject. Since past studies have presented a broad spectrum of these factors, this study has categorised them as those directly related to teaching and those indirectly related to teaching. As a basis for data collection the researcher first established the overall status of the Physical Science teachers and investigated how the factors identified affect teaching. A mixed method approach was followed, and given the breadth of the study, available raw data was collected through questionnaires, interviews and observations. Data collected on factors indirectly related to teaching showed that these factors affect factors directly related to teaching and both of them affect the performance of the teacher, and consequently those of learners. These findings revealed that the performance of Physical Science cannot be based on one factor only, but on a combination of factors that are interrelated and should be integrated for effective teaching practices. Recommendations have been made to the National and Provincial Department of Education, District offices, school management teams and Physical Science teachers to reinforce other strategies that have been in place in order to improve or sustain good performance of the subject and to close gaps that have not been identified as possible intervention strategies. They include upgrading qualifications with the current content and methodologies to match the changing curriculum, restructuring workshops so that they are informed by the teacher’s needs, stabilising the curriculum to avoid many changes in short periods of time, retraining of teachers, relevant appointment of Heads of Departments (HoDs) into subject management positions, utilisation of support groups by teachers, proper management of the subject, proper screening of Physical Science learners and provision of teaching and learning resources. / Science and Technology Education / M. Ed. (Natural Science Education)

The study investigated South African Grade 10 Physical science learners’ reasoning about basic chemical phenomena at sub-microscopic level. The study adopted a non-experimental, exploratory and descriptive method and was principally guided by the ex-post facto research design using a concurrent embedded strategy of mixed qualitative and qualitative approach. A total of 280 grade 10 physical science learners in their intact classes and six of their teachers participated in the study. The 280 physical science learners comprised of 100 students from two top performing schools, 100 learners from two middle performing schools and the last 80 learners were drawn from two poor performing schools in Gauteng Department of Education’s Tshwane North District. A two-tier multiple-choice paper and pencil Test of Basic Chemistry Knowledge (TBCK) based on the three levels of chemical representation of matter was administered to the 280 physical science learners in their Grade 11 first term to collect both quantitative and qualitative data. In addition to the TBCK, focus group discussions (FGDs) with learners, teacher interviews and document analysis were used to triangulate data. The results revealed that most Grade 10 learners find it easy to identify pure elements and the solid state but find it difficult to negotiate between the three levels (macroscopic, sub-microscopic and symbolic) of chemical representation of matter. It became clear that learners experienced more difficulties in the concepts of basic solutions, acidic solutions, concentration and ionic compounds in solution. It also became apparent that some learners could not tell differences between a diatomic element and a compound indicating conceptual problems when they reason at particle level, and as a result they could not identify a mixture of elements. The results also indicated that the concepts of pure compounds and mixtures of compounds were not easy to comprehend as most learners took a pure compound for a mixture of atoms and a mixture of compounds for a mixture of elements. It is therefore concluded that learners find it difficult negotiating the three levels of chemical representation of matter. However, it is not clear whether the misconceptions the learners showed could be completely attributable to the concepts involved or the nature of the sub-microscopic models that were used in the test as it was also revealed that most teachers were not using sub-microscopic representations during instruction to enable learners to think at particle level. Furthermore, justifications to the multiple-choice tasks revealed lack of understanding of basic chemical concepts as well as language problems amongst learners as they could not clearly express their reasoning. Based on the results, some recommendations to educators, chemistry curriculum planners, teacher education and the chemistry education research field are suggested. / Science and Technology Education / D. Phil. ((Philosophy in Mathematics, Science and Technology Education)

The integration of knowledge and skills across subjects and terrains of practice is crucial for achieving applied competence as defined in the National Qualifications Framework (NQF) (Department of Education 2003:3).). Physical science underperformance has plagued out Further Education Training (FET) schools sector for some time and therefore this study which is directed at the possible causes of poor performance and to device strategies that could assist physical science teachers to teach more effectively addresses a crucial gap in the performance of the country’s education provision. Emanating from the above, this study focused on the impact of National Curriculum Statement principle in the teaching of physical science in Grades 10 to 12 around Sekhukhune district. The study looked at integration as a principle endorsed in the National Curriculum Statement and how this is implemented by teachers in the teaching of physical science in grades 10-12.A literature study on the impact of National Curriculum Statement principle in the teaching of physical science was undertaken. A qualitative approach was used to obtain data from Grades 10-12 teacher in FET around Sekhukhune district. Data were collected in the form of participant observation, semi-structured and focus group interviews. The results indicate that teaches had no clear idea of integrating the relevant concepts in the subjects they were teaching (physical science). It was also found that teachers did not receive adequate in-service training specifically targeting the principle of integration. The study recommends the professional development of physical science teachers. The study indicated that the continuum model of integration is suitable for the implementation of concepts integration. It is believed that if the continuum model of integration could be used and followed by teacher as a guiding principle in the integration process, the challenges experienced by teachers in this regard will be minimized. / Science and Technology Education / M. Ed. (Natural Science Education)

Thesis (PhD)--Stellenbosch University, 2013. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: In this dissertation I report on an action research study in relation to the democratisation of science education in a Grade 10 life sciences classroom at a local high school through the application of educational technology, more specifically social network media such as Facebook. I argue that action research for social justice with the support of educational technology can contribute towards cultivating critical teaching and learning in the science classroom, thus contributing to the democratisation of science education in schools. In the main, this study shows that educational technology can contribute to the democratisation of science education in classrooms in relation to teaching contentious issues in the current life sciences school curriculum on three levels: firstly, learners and educators can experience enhanced levels of participation, collaboration and deliberation through Facebook; secondly, learners can construct personal learning contexts as a testament to the sense of autonomy they have (and can acquire) in learning about life sciences, particularly as they endeavour to nurture their critical and problem-solving skills, construct and apply life sciences knowledge, and integrate understandings of life sciences into the context of societal change; and thirdly, learners and educators can cultivate equal partnerships in the sense that equality refers to their insistence to „rupture‟ and „disrupt‟ pedagogical activities in the life sciences classroom. Finally, this study also reveals that critical teaching and learning in the life sciences classroom cannot be oblivious to poststructuralist thought on learning to think and act rhizomatically as opposed to hierarchically and linearly, and that exercising one‟s individual autonomy through a claim to intellectual equality can simply be pedagogical ingredients that can further enhance democratic science education in schools. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: In hierdie proefskrif doen ek verslag oor ‟n aksienavorsingstudie in verband met die demokratisering van wetenskaponderwys in ‟n Graad 10 lewenswetenskappe- klaskamer in ‟n plaaslike skool deur die toepassing van onderwystegnologie, meer spesifiek sosiale netwerkmedia soos Facebook. Ek argumenteer dat aksienavorsing vir sosiale geregtigheid met die ondersteuning van onderwystegnologie kan bydra tot die kultivering van kritiese onderrig en leer in die wetenskapklaskamer, wat dus bydra tot die demokratisering van wetenskaponderwys in skole. Hierdie studie bewys hoofsaaklik dat onderwystegnologie op drie vlakke kan bydra tot die demokratisering van wetenskaponderwys in klaskamers met verwysing na omstrede vraagstukke in die huidige lewenswetenskappe-skoolkurrikulum: eerstens kan leerders en opvoeders hoë vlakke van deelname, samewerking en beraadslaging deur Facebook ervaar; tweedens kan leerders persoonlike leerkontekste konstrueer as bevestiging van hulle sin van outonomiteit wat hulle bekom (en kan aanleer) deur leer oor die lewenswetenskappe, veral soos hulle poog om kritiese en probleemoplossingsvaardighede uit te bou, wetenskapskennis te konstrueer en toe te pas, en betekenisse van lewenswetenskappe in die konteks van sosiale verandering kan integreer; en derdens kan leerders en opvoeders gelyke verhoudings kweek in soverre gelykheid verwys na hulle aandrang daarop om pedagogiese aktiwiteite in die lewenswetenskappe-klaskamer te „verbreek‟ en te „ontwrig‟. Ten slotte wys hierdie studie dat kritiese onderrig en leer in die lewenswetenskappe-klaskamer nie onbewus kan wees van poststrukturalistiese denke oor die aanleer van risomatiese eerder as hiërargiese en liniêre denke en optrede nie, en dat die uitleef van individuele outonomie deur aanspraak te maak op intellektuele gelykheid die pedagogiese inspuiting kan wees wat benodig word om demokratiese wetenskaponderwys verder in skole te bevorder.