Bullying has become a serious concern in many American public middle schools in recent years. Inadequate professional development (PD) in bullying prevention and response strategies has compounded this problem. The overarching purpose of this study was to increase understanding of the growing problem of school bullying. Bronfenbrenner's socioecological theory, which states that environment and relationships influence student behavior, served as the conceptual framework for this qualitative study. Guiding research questions, grounded in socioecological theory, were used to examine middle school teachers' views of PD and their perceived skills in responding to or preventing bullying. Through purposeful sampling, 8 middle school teachers in a community in rural Alabama were interviewed over a 3-week period. Each had at least 1 year of teaching experience in the local rural setting. To authenticate study findings, discipline referrals and state incident reports spanning the 2 previous years were assessed for teacher management of bullying. Data were analyzed using open coding to identify and categorize the patterns and themes that emerged. Results indicated that the teachers perceived that PD would give them the strategies to recognize and manage incidents of school bullying. These results supported and informed the PD project for middle school teachers. This study contributes to social change by providing professional development that will help teachers to either prevent or manage school bullying appropriately, a benefit to children and communities.

This evaluation research study is concerned with the quality of support and in-service development for Malawian primary teachers through the medium of radio. The study aims to evaluate the influence that the current United States Agency for International Development (USAID)-funded interactive radio instruction (IRI) programme has on teachers’ behaviours, with the aim of proposing some guidelines for the development of a model of continuing professional development (CPD), appropriate to the Malawian context, using IRI. It identifies the teacher as a critical entity in raising levels of learners’ achievement within the primary school and posits that through improved teacher support and development, higher levels of learner achievement can be attained. The study identifies the potential that communication technology in the form of interactive radio instruction (IRI) offers in improving CPD of teachers at a cost that could be affordable to disadvantaged school communities in the country. The study takes place in a context where the Malawi government has been challenged to provide quality universal primary education after introducing free primary education (FPE) in 1994, which resulted in a massive expansion of primary schools, resulting in acute shortages of teachers. The study has drawn on aspects of practice theory and in particular the work of Giddens (1984), Bourdieu (1977, 1978), Shatzki et al (2001) and Reckwitz (2002a) in an attempt to emphasise the role of artefacts, such as interactive radio, as part of social practice. A practice theoretic perspective has been used to highlight the contentious role played by learning-objects in teacher practice and the need for flexibility and innovation in employing learning-objects like interactive radio as part of teaching practice. To carry out a critical exploration of the issues of teacher learning and practice, a longitudinal qualitative research approach was proposed for the evaluation of the existing IRI programme in Malawi. As the researcher was also actively involved in the planning of the Malawi IRI programme from onset, he therefore maintained a dual role of researcher and co-founder throughout the research process. The empirical evidence employed within this research was elicited through three main processes: interview survey, participant observation and focus groups in order to achieve validity through methodical triangulation. The analysis of this evidence shows the considerable difficulties faced by classroom teachers in attempting to adopt interactive radio and therefore be able to use interactive/active learner-centred instruction as part of their ongoing teaching practice. The analysis, however, also highlights the possibility of exploiting interactive radio for provision of an integrated, sustainable CPD of teachers in educationally deprived school communities. Overall, the research study puts emphasis on the need for paying attention to the social practices (contextually specific) within which the use of educational technologies (such as interactive radio), are enmeshed. There is need to explicate the details of such practices (instead of adopting a narrow, technical, focus on attributes of interactive radio itself) in order to improve the efficacy of using interactive radio.

This study examined the nature of teacher conflict and conflict management strategies employed by teachers in sixteen selected primary schools in the Pitseng region, Lesotho. The study was informed by the micro-political and organizational theories of Ball (1987), the two-dimensional model of conflict management proposed by Rahim (1983), and the model of oppression conceptualised by Young (2000). The study utilized a mixed methods approach. The sample included 16 schools and 163 teachers. The data collection techniques included a questionnaire survey and semi-structured interviews. Data were analyzed quantitatively and qualitatively. The findings revealed that teachers experienced institutional, cultural and personal conflicts within the micro-politics of the school settings. The complexity of teacher conflict becomes evident in the intersection of factors such as educational policy, religion, cultural norms and beliefs, ideologies and social groupings within schools. It is argued that embedded in teacher conflict are forms of oppression and domination and related power struggles. Four cross cutting issues exacerbate teacher conflict in the study schools, and these are: poor communication or lack of dialogue, inadequate conflict management skills, ineffective school leadership, and teacher stress within schools. The study revealed that teachers used strategies that were located mainly in three conflict management domains: integrating, obliging and compromising. Power dynamics within schools, religious and cultural ideologies, norms and beliefs, and lack of support were viewed as barriers to effective conflict management. Lack of support from the school management was cited as a major problem in addressing teacher conflict in these schools. The study has important implications for policy implementation at school and national levels, teacher development and school leadership training. The focus of conflict management training should be on getting teachers to analyse conflict and situations that trigger conflict through a social justice lens. A key aim would be to build socially just and inclusive school cultures located in a rights discourse, and grounded in the principles of participation, accountability, social inclusion, non-discrimination and linkages to human rights standards. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2010.

Tyrimo problema: Lietuvoje nepakankamai ištirta kokių žinių ir gebėjimų pedagogai turi turėti siekiant taikyti IKT ugdymo procese: parengiant savarankiškai besimokantį ugdytinį, gebantį tirti atvirus švietimo išteklius, vertinti jų patikimumą, taikyti IKT formalaus ugdymo procese. IKT kompetencija pedagogo profesinėje veikloje nėra apibrėžta, o pedagogo profesijos kompetencijos apraše pateiktas IKT kompetencijų apibrėžimas neatitinka šiuolaikinių IKT kompetencijų tarptautinių aprašų bei pedagogo veiklai keliamų reikalavimų švietimo reformos kontekste. Tyrimo objektas – pedagogų IKT kompetencija. Tyrimo tikslas – nustatyti pedagogų IKT kompetencijos sandarą ir jos raišką profesinėje veikloje. Tyrimo uždaviniai: 1. Aptarti pedagogo profesines kompetencijas Mokytojo profesijos kompetencijos aprašo kontekste. 2. Apibrėžti pedagogo IKT kompetenciją. 3. Apžvelgti Lietuvoje atliktus IKT kompetencijos raiškos tyrimus pedagogo profesinėje veikloje. 4. Ištirti pedagogų IKT kompetencijos raišką profesinėje veikloje. Tyrimo metodai: mokslinės literatūros analizė, duomenų analizei naudota aprašomoji statistinė analizė (naudojant SPSS Statistics 19 programą). Duomenų rinkimui naudota internetinė apklausa ir struktūruotas interviu. Pagrindinės išvados: 1. Kompetencijos sąvokos vienaskaitos ir daugiskaitos formos panaudojimas „Mokytojo profesijos kompetencijos apraše“ (2007) yra painus ir nelogiškas – mokytojų profesinę kompetenciją sudaro aštuonios kompetencijos. 2. Pedagogo IKT... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / Research issue: In Lithuania has not been sufficiently explored yet, which specific knowledge and skills the teacher should have in order to use ICT tools in the educational process under certain conditions: developing self-learners among children who are able to explore open educational resources, to value their validation, to apply and to use ICT in formal educational process. ICT application competencies are not described and ICT competence definition in teacher's professional competence schedule does not meet the definition of modern ICT competencies in the international schedule and the requirements of teachers' activities in context of education reform. Research subject – teachers' ICT competence. Research aim – to determine the contents of teacher ICT competence and it's identification in teacher professional activities. Research goals: 1. To discuss teacher ICT competencies in the context of teacher professional competence schedule in Lithuania. 2. To define teacher ICT competence. 3. To review ICT competence identification researches in teachers’ professional activities in Lithuania. 4. To explore teachers' ICT competence identification. Research methods – analysis of scientific literature, data analysis was performed using descriptive statistical analysis (using SPSS Statistics 19 program). Data collected using an online survey and structured interviews. The main conclusions: 1. The use of the singular and plural forms of ‘Competence’ term in “Teachers... [to full text]

Gabon is a Sub-Saharan francophone country which has been independent since August 1960. Its Educational System is modelled on the French System. However, the Gabonese Education System currently does not have any guidelines or policies for the system-wide implementation, integration and use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) into the education system. The Gabonese Government committed itself to some ICT-related partnerships, but did not launch any programme or activity relating to those commitments. In addition, the Government provided funding to change the country’s Internet connectivity by satellite with the WASC/SAT3 sub-marine cable in order to make Internet access and connection ten times cheaper at the international level. Unfortunately, the benefit from this investment is not experienced in the country as the potential users, such as teachers, keep having challenges with Internet connection. After fifty years of independence, the government also does not offer sufficient opportunity for teachers to enhance their pedagogical knowledge and skill through teacher professional development (TPD). As a result, no research, guidelines or policies exist for the implementation and use of Open Distance Learning (ODL) for TPD supported by ICT. The aim of this qualitative descriptive exploratory research study was to explore, describe and understand the enablers and challenges of initiating ICT in the ODL training of Gabonese in-service teachers. Although the academic seat for this research was the School of Continuing Teacher Education on the Potchefstroom Campus of the North-West University in South Africa, the research project’s focus, conceptualisation, data-collection and data-interpretation were all based and conducted within the researcher’s heimat, i.e. the Gabonese Education System context. An interactive qualitative casestudy research design (Denzin & Lincoln, 2005; Merriam, 1998) was used in this investigation to obtain in-depth context sensitive data concerning the attitudes, fears, needs, expectations, infrastructure and readiness of the Gabonese Education teachers (at schools and training institutions) for the implementation and use of ICT for ODL training of Gabonese English (second language) teachers, collected through qualitative research methods, i.e. semi-structured open-ended individual and focusgroup interviews, as well as additional research artefacts in the form of photographs to visually record the unique contexts involved. The researcher decided to involve Gabonese English (second language) teachers in the investigation, as he has worked in this discipline for at least twenty years. To ensure sufficient participants, the researcher made use of a snowball strategy where participants in the research referred others. Participants were also selected according to specific selection criteria. Two English (second language) teachers, one school principal, four ICT specialists, one advisor of English teachers, and one inspector of English teachers (ICT specialist) participated in eight individual interviews. Nine English teachers and two advisors of English teachers participated in four focus-group interviews. All interviews were conducted in French. At the North-West University in South Africa, the researcher transcribed the interview data and used ATLAS.ti™ (qualitative data-analysis software) to construct an integrated data-set for analysis. Qualitative data-analysis was performed under the guidance of an expert researcher in qualitative data-analysis. The relevant research findings were translated into English for the purpose of this report. Qualitative data-analysis of the integrated data-set identified six categories of data related to three themes, i.e. (i) Gabonese Education, (ii) ICT in Gabon and (iii) ODL in Gabon. The six categories are: (i) Challenges of Gabonese Education, (ii) Enablers of Gabonese Education, (iii) Challenges to implementation and integration of ICT, (iv) Enablers of ICT; (v) Challenges of ODL, and (vi) Enablers of ODL. These categories supported by codes and quotations provide basic ideas on the research enablers and challenges of initiating ICT in ODL training of Gabonese in-service teachers. The discussion comprises thirty codes, and recommendations are made. The findings of this rich qualitative exploration could benefit and support the Gabonese Education Department, policy makers and academic institutions in their quest to implement, integrate and use ICT in the TPD of in-service teachers via DE and ODL. / Thesis (MEd (Curriculum Development))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2013.

Gabon is a Sub-Saharan francophone country which has been independent since August 1960. Its Educational System is modelled on the French System. However, the Gabonese Education System currently does not have any guidelines or policies for the system-wide implementation, integration and use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) into the education system. The Gabonese Government committed itself to some ICT-related partnerships, but did not launch any programme or activity relating to those commitments. In addition, the Government provided funding to change the country’s Internet connectivity by satellite with the WASC/SAT3 sub-marine cable in order to make Internet access and connection ten times cheaper at the international level. Unfortunately, the benefit from this investment is not experienced in the country as the potential users, such as teachers, keep having challenges with Internet connection. After fifty years of independence, the government also does not offer sufficient opportunity for teachers to enhance their pedagogical knowledge and skill through teacher professional development (TPD). As a result, no research, guidelines or policies exist for the implementation and use of Open Distance Learning (ODL) for TPD supported by ICT. The aim of this qualitative descriptive exploratory research study was to explore, describe and understand the enablers and challenges of initiating ICT in the ODL training of Gabonese in-service teachers. Although the academic seat for this research was the School of Continuing Teacher Education on the Potchefstroom Campus of the North-West University in South Africa, the research project’s focus, conceptualisation, data-collection and data-interpretation were all based and conducted within the researcher’s heimat, i.e. the Gabonese Education System context. An interactive qualitative casestudy research design (Denzin & Lincoln, 2005; Merriam, 1998) was used in this investigation to obtain in-depth context sensitive data concerning the attitudes, fears, needs, expectations, infrastructure and readiness of the Gabonese Education teachers (at schools and training institutions) for the implementation and use of ICT for ODL training of Gabonese English (second language) teachers, collected through qualitative research methods, i.e. semi-structured open-ended individual and focusgroup interviews, as well as additional research artefacts in the form of photographs to visually record the unique contexts involved. The researcher decided to involve Gabonese English (second language) teachers in the investigation, as he has worked in this discipline for at least twenty years. To ensure sufficient participants, the researcher made use of a snowball strategy where participants in the research referred others. Participants were also selected according to specific selection criteria. Two English (second language) teachers, one school principal, four ICT specialists, one advisor of English teachers, and one inspector of English teachers (ICT specialist) participated in eight individual interviews. Nine English teachers and two advisors of English teachers participated in four focus-group interviews. All interviews were conducted in French. At the North-West University in South Africa, the researcher transcribed the interview data and used ATLAS.ti™ (qualitative data-analysis software) to construct an integrated data-set for analysis. Qualitative data-analysis was performed under the guidance of an expert researcher in qualitative data-analysis. The relevant research findings were translated into English for the purpose of this report. Qualitative data-analysis of the integrated data-set identified six categories of data related to three themes, i.e. (i) Gabonese Education, (ii) ICT in Gabon and (iii) ODL in Gabon. The six categories are: (i) Challenges of Gabonese Education, (ii) Enablers of Gabonese Education, (iii) Challenges to implementation and integration of ICT, (iv) Enablers of ICT; (v) Challenges of ODL, and (vi) Enablers of ODL. These categories supported by codes and quotations provide basic ideas on the research enablers and challenges of initiating ICT in ODL training of Gabonese in-service teachers. The discussion comprises thirty codes, and recommendations are made. The findings of this rich qualitative exploration could benefit and support the Gabonese Education Department, policy makers and academic institutions in their quest to implement, integrate and use ICT in the TPD of in-service teachers via DE and ODL. / Thesis (MEd (Curriculum Development))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2013.

Although the Internet is widely used in many areas, its use in school mathematics is at best in its infancy. Studies show that Mathematics teachers have fewer uses for the Internet than teachers of other disciplines. Hence, this research adopted a mixed method approach to investigate what mathematics materials are on the Internet, how teachers are teaching mathematics with the Web and mathematic students' perceptions and engagement with the Internet. This research reviewed the World Wide Web for mathematics materials and found three major groupings of online resources namely interactive resources, non-interactive resources, and communications possibilities. A typology of Web objects was constructed and a database based on a Task-Web object approach was proposed for teacher use. A broad survey was used to elicit information about Internet usage among mathematic teachers. A total of 103 mathematics teachers responded and 15 were interviewed to gain further insight into their usage. Observations of Internet use were also conducted in the classrooms of 4 teachers. The results show that most teachers would like to use the Internet more in their teaching of mathematics but many do not know where and how to do so in an effective way. Statistics, Business Mathematics and Number operations appear to be the more popular topics. Using statistics data from the Web seem to be the Web feature that is most common followed by using the Internet as a resource centre for word problems. Web communications are seldom used. Common constraints teachers face include lack of time, difficulty in planning, lack of knowledge of good Web sites that map to curricula, slow download times, and limited booking times. Students perceive doing activities on the Internet as better than from the textbook because of the amount and variety of information, the better explanations and the change in mode of presentation. Students who have a low comfort level with mathematics wish their teachers would use the Internet. The power of interactive activities on the Internet to engage and motivate these students is due to a variety of reasons such as the element of game play, a change from the routine, its ability to present different conceptual visuals, the independent self paced learning, and quick feedback that came with the use of the Internet. The Internet also enabled students to access difficult to find information and saved them time. The findings also suggest that teachers' persistence in using the Internet could bring about a routine that helps students settle down to the task and stay on task. Teachers' choice and discernment of Web-based activities that are engaging and motivating are paramount to the success of this learning tool. Four Web-based strategies for teaching mathematics were documented and a model of underlying knowledge for teacher practice with the Web was suggested.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-06-11T19:24:53Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2007-04-16Bitstream added on 2014-06-13T19:32:02Z : No. of bitstreams: 1 barbosa_ep_me_rcla.pdf: 459189 bytes, checksum: af33037be8e3b7ad0baa3c4603a39a36 (MD5) / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) / Este trabalho tem por objetivo identificar de que modo as ações educacionais públicas podem estar afetando a vida profissional dos professores, a partir do discurso deles mesmos. Para tanto, mostramos que este estudo é relevante para a educação matemática pois evidencia uma carência na literatura científica sobre a influência de Políticas Educacionais na vida profissional do professor de Matemática, na voz deles mesmos. Num outro momento fazemos um paralelo entre as mudanças ocorridas no Reino Unido, no governo de Margareth Thatcher, e o brasileiro, principalmente na décade de 90, particularmente em relação ao sistema educacional. No segundo capítulo fazemos uma análise da entrevista que efetuamos com um professor de Ensino Fundamental, com o objetivo acima em mente. E por fim, fazemos conclusões de modo a dialogar com nosso objetivo inicial e assim oferecer, talvez, subsídios aos formuladores/implementadores de políticas educacionais e formadores de professores de Matemática. / This aimed at identifying the ways in which public educational actions (policies) can be affecting the professional life of teachers of mathematics, By examining their own speeches. We show that this is a relevant study for the field of Mathematics Education (by eliciting a void on literature related to this subject). We then present, for the sake of better positioning the current situation in Brazilian school systems, a reading of the similitude between what has happened in the UK (Thatcher and post-Thatcher era) and in Brazil (beginning from Fernando Collor s government), in terms of an increased control of school systems, opposed to a consistent effort to remove government from the productive system. In Chapter 2 we analyse an interview made with a teacher who works on grades 5 to 8 and, finally, on Chapter 3 we offer conclusions and some possible suggestions for educational policymakers and for mathematics teacher educators.

Orientador: Romulo Campos Lins / Banca: Carlos Roberto Vianna / Banca: Rosana Giaretta Sguerra Miskulin / Resumo: Este trabalho tem por objetivo identificar de que modo as ações educacionais públicas podem estar afetando a vida profissional dos professores, a partir do discurso deles mesmos. Para tanto, mostramos que este estudo é relevante para a educação matemática pois evidencia uma carência na literatura científica sobre a influência de Políticas Educacionais na vida profissional do professor de Matemática, na voz deles mesmos. Num outro momento fazemos um paralelo entre as mudanças ocorridas no Reino Unido, no governo de Margareth Thatcher, e o brasileiro, principalmente na décade de 90, particularmente em relação ao sistema educacional. No segundo capítulo fazemos uma análise da entrevista que efetuamos com um professor de Ensino Fundamental, com o objetivo acima em mente. E por fim, fazemos conclusões de modo a dialogar com nosso objetivo inicial e assim oferecer, talvez, subsídios aos formuladores/implementadores de políticas educacionais e formadores de professores de Matemática. / Abstract: This aimed at identifying the ways in which public educational actions (policies) can be affecting the professional life of teachers of mathematics, By examining their own speeches. We show that this is a relevant study for the field of Mathematics Education (by eliciting a void on literature related to this subject). We then present, for the sake of better positioning the current situation in Brazilian school systems, a reading of the similitude between what has happened in the UK (Thatcher and post-Thatcher era) and in Brazil (beginning from Fernando Collor’s government), in terms of an increased control of school systems, opposed to a consistent effort to remove government from the productive system. In Chapter 2 we analyse an interview made with a teacher who works on grades 5 to 8 and, finally, on Chapter 3 we offer conclusions and some possible suggestions for educational policymakers and for mathematics teacher educators. / Mestre

Made available in DSpace on 2016-06-02T19:39:06Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 2724.pdf: 981480 bytes, checksum: 0fcfd8e8fcd0b221be07042ad090330e (MD5) Previous issue date: 2009-12-04 / Esse estudo resultou de uma investigação qualitativa sobre o Estágio Curricular Supervisionado (ECS) e sua importância na constituição de um viés dos processos de aprender a ensinar por meio do percurso formativo vivido por alunos do sexto termo do curso de Pedagogia na Universidade Federal de São Carlos. O questionamento que norteou essa pesquisa foi: Quais as contribuições do Estágio Curricular Supervisionado para a formação inicial docente na visão de um grupo de futuros professores, alunos de curso de Pedagogia? O objetivo geral buscou a descrição e análise de aspectos referentes aos processos de aprender a ensinar no decorrer do ECS, de maneira mais específica: as relações entre as experiências do curso de graduação e o estágio supervisionado; as possibilidades e limitações do estágio na aprendizagem de habilidades, atitudes e conhecimentos da docência; aspectos relevantes da formação profissional docente destacados a partir do ECS; as expectativas, as dificuldades, os dilemas, os desafios e conflitos vivenciados durante o ECS, suas formas de enfrentamento e análise e por fim, as impressões e concepções, percebidas no ECS sobre a ação do professor na sala de aula e sobre sua futura ação como docente nesse contexto. Assim, o referencial teórico dessa pesquisa foi constituído por meio das leituras e reflexões realizadas durante o delineamento desse estudo, buscando evidenciar a formação inicial de professores realizando um breve apanhado histórico, além de discutir um pouco das mudanças sociais as quais temos vivenciado e a maneira como elas influenciam a formação docente. Nesse sentido, trouxe também uma discussão sobre o estágio, uma breve contextualização histórica e seu papel na formação de professores. A coleta de dados foi realizada por meio de questionário de caracterização dos sujeitos, diários de campo, relatório e entrevista com os futuros professores. Dessa maneira, os dados foram analisados à luz da teoria estudada, refletindo sobre as contribuições do ECS para a aprendizagem de aspectos da docência. Por fim, foi possível perceber que o estágio, segundo os futuros professores, contribui de maneira significativa para visualizarem a ação do professor e sua futura ação no contexto escolar, assim como para a aprendizagem de características peculiares da docência. O ECS pode ser melhor estruturado fornecendo assim melhores condições para que os futuros professores percebam e compreendam a função para a qual estão sendo formados.