Submitted in fulfillment for the requirements of the Degree of Doctor of Education in the Department of Didactics in the Faculty of Education at the University of Zululand, 1995. / This research centred on one broad objective, i.e. to establish the effectiveness of school-based practice teaching for student teachers in a selection of Primary Teachers Diploma (PTD) Colleges of Education in KwaZulu. Chapter 2 covers the review of literature on practice teaching. Firstly, the history of practice teaching is discussed so as to put the study in historical perspective. Secondly, research findings in selected countries are reviewed so that the study can be viewed in relation to international research trends. Thirdly, some approaches, which give a multifaceted nature of practice teaching as a field of study, are analysed. Chapter 3 discusses the criteria for effective school-based practice teaching with the aim of using such criteria as a yardstick for the analysis of the results of the study. Chapter 4 looks at the didactic theoretical constructs for a practice teaching curriculum . The implication being that any didactically justifiable practice teaching programme should be informed by what is discussed in Chapters 3 and 4. The questionnaire survey, as well as the informal interviews, were used in this study. A mixture of quantitative and qualitative methods has enabled the researcher to gain deeper understanding and a more penetrating insight regarding the problem under investigation. Findings of the study revealed that there was a consistent pattern of conflict regarding the results which emanated from qualitative findings. Qualitative findings, because of the open-ended nature of the questions, tended to be more reliable in terms of the respondents' ability to critically reflect upon current practices regarding practice teaching in KwaZulu Colleges of Education. Quantitative results, because of the close-ended nature of the survey questions, tended to be less realistic regarding practice teaching in these colleges. This became a chief advantage of quantitative and qualitative coupling of research methods as discussed in the above paragraph. The three most important findings of this study are: 1. There is lack of effective partnership between colleges and schools when it comes to the professional preparation of teachers. 2. The transfer of theory to practice by student teachers is hindered due to the poor quality of the relationship between theoretical training and practice. 3. The supervision of practice teaching is not effective because there is no collaboration between the college lecturer, the co-operating teacher and the student. The above major findings emphasise the need for colleges and schools to view themselves as institutions for teacher education. In this case teacher education should not be seen as the function of colleges of education only. This has implications for a major paradigm shift regarding teacher education. The following are the two most significant recommendations: 1. The practical training of teachers requires radical transformation regarding the need for collaboration between colleges and schools in the training of teachers. Partnership between the college and practising schools should not be a haphazard affair, but should be formalised. 2- All those involved in practice teaching supervision should be trained which will lead to practice teaching being a professional exercise, which is presently not the case. At the moment the practical training of students is a ritual which both the lecturers and students endure out of sympathy for students and not because of an understanding of the finer points regarding the importance this area of human experience. This study recommends major innovations regarding teacher education. One might conclude that viable solutions to the research problem have been found.

In a Georgia middle school, general and special education teachers expressed concerns about the challenges of working collaboratively in the inclusive classroom. Effective teacher collaboration is pivotal to ensure academic success of all students. The purpose of this qualitative bounded instrumental case study was to explore middle school teachers' perceptions and attitudes toward shared teacher collaboration in inclusion classrooms. Lave and Wenger's situated learning theory was the conceptual framework. Purposeful sampling was used to select 4 general and 4 special education teachers who worked in middle school coteaching classrooms. Face-to-face interviews and teacher lesson plans were the data sources. Data were analyzed using inductive analysis and open and axial coding strategies. Teachers identified ongoing training emphasizing coteaching models, collaboration, and classroom management strategies, coplanning periods, teacher selection guidelines for inclusion classes, and administrative involvement in collaboration as challenges of and optimal opportunities for working collaboratively. Based on these findings, a 3-day professional development project was designed to support effective teacher collaboration and foster positive communication with administration teams. These endeavors may contribute to positive social change when administrators establish and cultivate a school culture of positive teacher collaboration between general and special education teachers involved in coteaching, thereby improving teachers' coteaching experiences and improving the academic environment for all learners.

Teachers at the local study site continue to leave the elementary school and profession at increasingly high rates creating a teacher shortage. The school staff consists of 33 teachers, with an average of 10 resigning each year. Because of the shortage, state and local school boards, school districts, and school-based administrators share the need to understand this phenomenon. Guided by Herzberg's 2-factor theory, which noted that people are motivated by attributes such as recognition and by Maslow's motivational theory, which refers to human needs and personal beliefs as motivational factors, this study investigated factors that contributed to teacher attrition and retention, as well as strategies used to improve retention of novice teachers. Nine novice teachers employed at the local site participated in e-mail interviews. Participants provided their perception of factors that influenced their decision to remain or stay in the profession. Data were analyzed with an emphasis on seeking emerged themes through the process of open coding. Data analysis revealed a gap in the level of support from mentors and administrators that affected novice teachers' professional growth, as well as their decision to leave or stay in the profession. Participants listed incentives, acknowledgment, and training as the primary strategies for retaining teachers. The findings led to the creation of a professional development program. This study contributes to positive social change by providing educators a deeper understanding of the problem of teacher attrition and by identifying strategies to manage teacher turnover to improve retention efforts.

This qualitative study explored the changes in the practice of early childhood education (ECE) teachers in a specific Montessori program after a series of trainings. This study’s purpose was to compare the teacher practices in a Montessori preschool program before and after specific pedagogical training. The ECE teachers were trained in a four-week series of didactic sessions on Montessori philosophy and pedagogy. On week days the teachers were mentored by observation, direct feedback, and guidance of practice. Classes met 15 hours per week for a total of 60 contact hours. Prior to the beginning of the training classes a baseline of each teacher was established according to the qualities identified for the study. These qualities included the teacher’s subjective view of young children, their perception of their teaching role, and their performance with children. Following the end of the training period this process was repeated and any changes were reviewed and described. The information for this review was collected by interview, ongoing documented observation, personal narratives, and personal journals. Results of the study supported that specific Montessori training impacted the participant/teachers’ subjective view of young children, the perception of their teaching role, and their performance with children. As compared to the beginning of the study, after the four weeks of training the participant/teachers recognized a more constructivist view of how young children learn; they expressed a more reflective perception of their teaching role; and engaged in more responsive, facilitative, and less interruptive performance with children. Conclusions of the study were that providing Montessori pedagogical and philosophical training can improve the qualitative relationships of teachers with young children.

The student-teacher relationship quality has shown to predict academic and social outcomes (Crosnoe, Johnson, & Elder, 2004), and relatively recent research suggests its protective nature for children who are academically at-risk, such as those with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD; Ewe, 2019). Unfortunately, children with ADHD often have strained relationships with their teachers (Rogers & Tannock, 2013). Aside from our understanding of this association, little is known about the developmental trajectory of the association, nor other systemic mechanisms that could be contributing to it. Therefore, three related studies were executed to enhance our understanding of the complexities of the student-teacher relationship for children with ADHD. The first study of the three targeted preschool children in the community (n=113) and their daycare providers (n=55), and assessed the association between early ADHD symptoms and concurrent and later student-teacher relationships in kindergarten (n=67). Findings revealed that higher inattention in preschool was associated with more conflict with daycare providers/educators, whereas higher hyperactivity/impulsivity symptoms in kindergarten children were associated with higher student-teacher conflict. The second study compared the student-teacher relationship of children with clinical diagnoses of ADHD and typically developing peers (n=76). Additionally, family-school relations and communication were investigated as a potential contribution to the student-teacher relationship quality. Non-significant differences of the parent-teacher relationship for children with ADHD versus those without the disorder were identified. However, home-school communication was established as a mediator between both inattention and hyperactivity/impulsivity symptoms and student-teacher conflict. Utilizing the same research methods as study two, study three evaluated the contribution of teacher-level characteristics on the student-teacher relationship for children with clinical diagnoses of ADHD. Teacher stress, self-efficacy, and knowledge of ADHD were assessed as mediators between ADHD symptoms and the student-teacher relationship quality. Significant main findings revealed that teacher stress significantly mediated the relationship between children’s ADHD symptoms and student-teacher conflict, whereas teacher efficacy and knowledge of ADHD did not. As a whole, this dissertation research project established and enhanced our understanding of developmental and systemic mechanisms contributing to the student-teacher relationship quality for children exhibiting ADHD symptomology. Future research directives and practical implications are reviewed.

The purposes of this study were to investigate the professional growth needs of teachers in California and to assess their need satisfaction, with additional reference made to their perceptions of the Professional Growth Plan(s). Twenty-five professional opportunities were listed in the professional growth needs assessment survey instrument created by the researcher, and the subjects under study were asked to identify their needs and to evaluate their need satisfaction in relation to these professional opportunities. The population selected for this study was the Professional Clear Multiple Subject Teaching Credential holders prepared by the Gladys L. Benerd School of Education at the University of the Pacific between 1985 and 1991. The data collected from the survey instrument and telephone interviews were used to determine the extent to which the subjects' identified professional growth needs were met, and to examine whether California's mandated requirements for professional growth were perceived as being able to facilitate the subjects' need satisfaction. The findings of this study suggest that there is no universal growth path that addresses teachers' professional needs. For a better understanding of their needs, continuous needs assessments should be conducted. In order to maximize teachers' commitment to professional growth, the system should strive to remove obstacles, build in support, and extend growth opportunities. A growth-oriented system seems to hold a greater promise of success for teachers' professional growth than does an accountability system.

The purpose of this study was to obtain information regarding the effectiveness of currently used admissions criteria (undergraduate grade point average; master's degree grade point average; Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) and Miller Analogies Test (Mat) scores; ratings on essays, interviews, and letters of recommendation; and an accomplishment coefficient) for doctoral study at University of the Pacific School of Education in Stockton, California. Archival data compared these measures with certain criteria for finishing the doctoral program (first-semester grade point average, overall doctoral degree grade point average, passing or failing comprehensive examinations and number of trials to do so, years to appointment of dissertation committee, grade in the intermediate statistics course, years to awarding of degree, and whether the degree was completed). Subjects included all students admitted to the school's doctoral programs between 1976 and 1990 who took at least nine units in the pursuit of that degree. Data from 337 student records were analyzed and produced the following statistically significant results: There were small but significant correlations between certain clusters of admissions criteria (GRE and MAT scores and master's degree grade point averages) and certain program criteria (first-semester and overall doctoral grade point averages, statistics grade, and number of trials to pass doctoral comprehensive examinations). Multiple linear regression also indicated a small but significant ability to predict a few criteria from the GRE and MAT. Multiple linear regression also indicated a small but significant ability to predict a few program criteria within individual School of Education departments. The admissions criteria did not, in most cases, significantly differentiate those students who were successful in the doctoral program as measured by the chosen criteria. Implications of these findings were discussed in the final chapter. The study concluded with recommendations for further use of the data and for future research.

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