Many aspects of teaching involve the personal dimension of teaching and yet this dimension is often neglected and overlooked as we prepare teachers and sustain teachers in their work. The personal beliefs, attitudes and emotions of teachers often determine the decisions that teachers make in their classrooms. Increasingly, educational researchers have found that effective teachers are aware of this dimension. The aim of this study was to better understand how teachers' self perceptions and understandings of teaching evolve and change across their professional lives and what events contribute to these understandings. A series of in-depth individual interviews were conducted with six early career public education teachers who were also alumni of the graduate teacher education program at Virginia Tech. Interview data were supplemented with a review of artifacts from preservice teacher education program, visual representations of teacher identity development at various stages over the career of teaching and a timeline of significant events encountered during the teaching career. Results of this research suggest that teachers' understandings of the multiple complexities of teaching deepen within the first years of teaching; teaching is emotional work; and the context of teaching heavily influences teachers' practice of teaching regardless of their beliefs about teaching. Suggestions for university teacher education programs and local school districts are discussed. / Ph. D.

This action-based, qualitative research project involving 7 early childhood educators working in a well-established preschool child care program examined the influences of job-embedded professional development on children’s experiences of mathematics. Data was collected through observations, journals, conversations, interviews, and surveys, and then analyzed using a grounded theory model. A number of themes emerged, the strongest being those related to teachers’ increased awareness, interpretation, and support of children’s explorations in mathematics during play. This project provides an example of a successful model of teacher development for early childhood educators, and contributes to the growing field of research in mathematics education related to teacher noticing, but at the preschool level. Further, with the introduction of full day kindergarten and the emphasis on play based learning this project provides many rich examples of the mathematics present in children's every day play that can be used in future teacher development.

The purpose of this research activity was to determine the nature of in-service training as a mode of capacitating and developing teachers in public secondary schools serviced by the Matlosana Area Office (AO). The process of teacher in-service training is constantly faced by challenges, which derail and stall progress and sometimes negatively affect learners’ performance. Amongst others, these challenges include: changes in the curriculum, inconsistent monitoring and follow-up on in-service training programmes, the impact of teacher performance on learners’ attainment, the HIV/AIDS scourge, poor learner discipline, incorrect placement of teachers with regard to school and subjects taught, and the low participation of key role-players. The Department of Education (DoE) is divided into the Department of Basic Education and the Department of Higher Education. A literature study to look into the Department of Basic Education’s Acts, policies, strategies and other relevant documents aimed at skilling and developing teachers, was carried out. This assisted the researcher in understanding the legal parameters that guide teacher in-service training. Upon completion of the literature study, a brief explanation of the empirical research design, the administration and the use of the questionnaire as a research tool, are given. Data were collected from the respondents in the randomly selected secondary schools in the focus area – by means of a questionnaire. These data gave the researcher an idea of the situation with regard to teacher in-service training in the Matlosana Area Office’s responsibility area. To respond to the statements, respondents were required to indicate their views by ticking on a 5-step Likert scale. Respondents were given the opportunity of writing down their opinions; and these were summed up and indicated. Data collected were analysed and presented in the form of tables and histograms. This was followed by the interpretation of these data. Chapter 5 of the mini-dissertation presents a summary of the research activities. The findings, in accordance with the literature review, and the results of the empirical research with regard to the stated research objectives, are also presented. Finally, based on the findings, conclusions are drawn and recommendations subsequently formulated. Major findings include the need for more time to be dedicated to in-service training, thorough monitoring and prompt follow-up thereof. Data collected also indicated that the DoBE has a number of programmes in place to develop teachers and to put them on a par with curriculum requirements. Despite these efforts, some schools are still performing below the required standard. / Thesis (M Development and Management)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2012

The purpose of this research activity was to determine the nature of in-service training as a mode of capacitating and developing teachers in public secondary schools serviced by the Matlosana Area Office (AO). The process of teacher in-service training is constantly faced by challenges, which derail and stall progress and sometimes negatively affect learners’ performance. Amongst others, these challenges include: changes in the curriculum, inconsistent monitoring and follow-up on in-service training programmes, the impact of teacher performance on learners’ attainment, the HIV/AIDS scourge, poor learner discipline, incorrect placement of teachers with regard to school and subjects taught, and the low participation of key role-players. The Department of Education (DoE) is divided into the Department of Basic Education and the Department of Higher Education. A literature study to look into the Department of Basic Education’s Acts, policies, strategies and other relevant documents aimed at skilling and developing teachers, was carried out. This assisted the researcher in understanding the legal parameters that guide teacher in-service training. Upon completion of the literature study, a brief explanation of the empirical research design, the administration and the use of the questionnaire as a research tool, are given. Data were collected from the respondents in the randomly selected secondary schools in the focus area – by means of a questionnaire. These data gave the researcher an idea of the situation with regard to teacher in-service training in the Matlosana Area Office’s responsibility area. To respond to the statements, respondents were required to indicate their views by ticking on a 5-step Likert scale. Respondents were given the opportunity of writing down their opinions; and these were summed up and indicated. Data collected were analysed and presented in the form of tables and histograms. This was followed by the interpretation of these data. Chapter 5 of the mini-dissertation presents a summary of the research activities. The findings, in accordance with the literature review, and the results of the empirical research with regard to the stated research objectives, are also presented. Finally, based on the findings, conclusions are drawn and recommendations subsequently formulated. Major findings include the need for more time to be dedicated to in-service training, thorough monitoring and prompt follow-up thereof. Data collected also indicated that the DoBE has a number of programmes in place to develop teachers and to put them on a par with curriculum requirements. Despite these efforts, some schools are still performing below the required standard. / Thesis (M Development and Management)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2012

This action-based, qualitative research project involving 7 early childhood educators working in a well-established preschool child care program examined the influences of job-embedded professional development on children’s experiences of mathematics. Data was collected through observations, journals, conversations, interviews, and surveys, and then analyzed using a grounded theory model. A number of themes emerged, the strongest being those related to teachers’ increased awareness, interpretation, and support of children’s explorations in mathematics during play. This project provides an example of a successful model of teacher development for early childhood educators, and contributes to the growing field of research in mathematics education related to teacher noticing, but at the preschool level. Further, with the introduction of full day kindergarten and the emphasis on play based learning this project provides many rich examples of the mathematics present in children's every day play that can be used in future teacher development.

Educational policies and systemic inequalities have created “very different educational realities” for African American students and their white counterparts (Darling-Hammond, 2005) resulting in low literacy rates, low test scores, and high dropout rates. Culturally relevant pedagogy has been shown to increase the academic achievement of culturally diverse students (Gay, 2000; Howard, 2003; Ladson-Billings, 1994). However, many in-service teachers struggle to effectively implement a culturally relevant pedagogy (CRP) (Esposito & Swain, 2009; May, 2011; Rozansky, 2010), and limited research has been conducted on professional development aimed at supporting teachers’ knowledge and practices around CRP (Knight & Wiseman, 2005; Milner, 2009). Guided by sociocultural theory (Vygotsky, 1934/1986; Wertsch 1991), critical theory (Freire, 1970), critical race theory (Delgado & Stefanic, 2012; Taylor, 2009) and critical pedagogy (Freire, 1970; Giroux, 2003), this study examined teachers’ changing beliefs and practices as they engaged in professional development on issues related to culturally relevant pedagogy and literacy development. Questions guiding this study were: (1) What shifts do teachers make in their conceptual and pedagogical understandings around CRP when engaged in professional development activities? (2) What factors enhance or inhibit teachers’ ability to implement CRP during literacy instruction? (3) How do teachers navigate contextual constraints to implement their beliefs in relation to CRP? The methodology for this study is formative experiment, as its goal is to bridge the gap between theory and practice, (Bradley & Reinking, 2011). A continuous, teacher-centered professional development focused on CRP served as the intervention for this formative experiment. Data sources include audio-recorded interviews and teacher debrief session, video-recorded professional development sessions, and field notes from classroom observations. Findings of this study indicate that theoretical learning, critical self-reflection, collaboration, and longevity are integral to support shifts in teachers beliefs and practices around culturally relevant pedagogy. Findings also show that the shifting process is dynamic and complex and occurs differently for individuals. Implications of this study suggest that professional learning should be differentiated for teachers as it considers teachers beliefs, experiences, and work context during the learning process. Teachers can form communities of practice to support each other’s learning goals and implementation of CRP.

This study aimed to investigate what constituted the professional practical knowledge of EFL experienced teachers in the Egyptian context and what the sources of their knowledge were. It also aimed to examine the relationship between the teachers’ knowledge and the contextual factors intervening in action. By delineating its focus as such, the study responds to call for reconceptualising the core of the knowledge base of teaching to focus on teaching as a knowledge-based activity and an act of common sense and reasoning, the pedagogy by which teaching is done, and the context in which it is done. The study was carried out using multiple methods for collecting qualitative and quantitative data. This design was chosen to investigate the participants’ views of professional practical knowledge and to construct their different understandings and interpretations which they brought with them. Questionnaires completed by 236 EFL experienced teachers, semi-structured interviews conducted with 14 of them and stimulated recall classroom observation data with three of them were the data collected for the current study. Although it provided a parsimonious view, quantitative questionnaire data made an important contribution to the bricolage of information built up during the study. A more in-depth understanding was gained from qualitative data using responses to the open-ended section of the questionnaire, interviews and classroom observation. Based on quantitative and qualitative data analyses, six core areas of teacher knowledge were constructed from the participants’ responses and accounts. These were: subject matter, pedagogy, students, classroom learning environment, curriculum and self. The findings also revealed a variety of sources which shaped the teachers’ professional practical knowledge including: experience, teacher education, university study in the subject department, student and peer feedback, in-service training, expert advice, student output and postgraduate study. The findings also revealed that the relationship between teacher knowledge and practice was reflected in two ways. The first was that teacher knowledge represented an operative model which underpinned practice. The second was that it informed the classroom decisions. However, not all teacher knowledge found application in practice. A variety of intervening contextual challenges were revealed to deter the actualisation of teacher knowledge in action such as the EFL exam policy, lack of time, support and resources, mismatch between teacher purposes and students’ expectations and needs, and large class size. These findings were discussed in relation to existing research evidence and context. Implications for pre-service and in-service teacher learning were also drawn based on the findings of the study.

The purpose of this research was to investigate special educators’ problem solving approaches through the lens of adaptive expertise. An explanatory sequential mixed methods design was used with participants of varying experience levels and teaching contexts from one Mid-Atlantic state. Participants responded to a researcher-developed survey about their orientations to problem solving (N = 162), then a purposive sample completed semi-structured interviews (N = 8). Following survey measure refinement and validation, quantitative data were analyzed through descriptive statistics, z-scores, correlation, and chi-square test of independence. Subsequently, qualitative data were analyzed through iterative cycles of hypothesis and open coding. Finally, quantitative and qualitative data were linked through mixed methods analysis. Results of exploratory factor analysis identified an 18-item, two-factor structure within the survey measure. Survey results indicated most special educators had more adaptive than routine expertise orientations to problem solving; for some these orientations were balanced, while others had a much stronger orientation to adaptive expertise. Though no statistical relationship was found between teaching experience and participants’ degree of adaptive or routine tendencies when problem solving, teachers interviewed spoke of the role of experience in shaping their problem solving approaches. Many also noted that the application of particular approaches were dependent upon characteristics of their teaching contexts. Literature-based indicators of adaptive expertise were evident across examples of problem solving in special educators’ narrative data. Together, survey and interview data captured a more comprehensive and nuanced picture of special educators’ problem solving in practice than either approach could have alone.

Made available in DSpace on 2015-03-04T21:14:59Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 25 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / A investigação foi realizada na cidade de Pelotas, RS, em três escolas públicas da rede municipal de ensino que, durante um período de três anos, entre 2000 e 2002, deram vida ao projeto ReDE – Repensar a Docência em Exercício. O Projeto destinado à formação (continuada) de professores as buscou aproximar diferentes escolas, mediante encontros organizados sob a forma de relatos de experiências, complementados por oficinas e palestras. Esses encontros, que ocorriam uma vez ao ano, refletiam processos formativos desenvolvidos pelas respectivas escolas em seus contextos educativos. A pesquisa teve como referência principal entrevistas com onze docentes que participaram do ReDE e possuiu dois objetivos principais: o primeiro, registrar a experiência formativa promovida por escolas públicas, dando visibilidade à produção escolar, sobretudo, a resultante do trabalho coletivo e seus atores; o segundo destinou-se a refletir os significados do ReDE e prováveis desdobramentos na constituição de docências em cada escola / An investigation, during a period of three years, between 2000 and 2002, was carried out in the city of Pelotas, RS, in three public schools from the municipal network of education, work which gave life to the project ReDE – Rethinking In-service Teaching. The Project, destined to continued teacher development, had the intention of making different schools get nearer to each other through meetings organized in the form of reports on experience, complemented by workshops and lectures. These meetings, which occurred once a year, reflected formative processes developed by the respective schools in their own educational contexts. Interviews with eleven teachers who participated in ReDE were performed, being considered the main reference, as well as the research having two principal objectives: the first, to register the formative experience promoted by public schools, making the school production visible above all, the resulting collective work, and its actors. The second objective was destined to thinking about

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-27T14:31:20Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Elize Keller Franco.pdf: 1274152 bytes, checksum: 2ba3ee8d9e881a586d97eb9143a41a8b (MD5) Previous issue date: 2014-03-07 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / The recurrent complaint that the preparation offered in initial training courses are not offered appropriate responses to the new demands of teachers' work in contemporary society and the challenges faced by teachers in their daily practices have raised doubts about the revision of curricula that prepares these professionals . In this context, this study aims at a critical analysis of an alternative curriculum organization that has been developed in the courses of initial teacher development, specifically in the courses Science Undergraduate, Art & Language and Communication of Federal University of Parana - Coastline campus. For this, we chose the guiding question as in what extent the proposal being developed in UFPR Coastline brings elements with potential to contribute to a new curricular paradigm in initial teacher development. The adopted methodological approach for this study is the qualitative research approach in the form of case study. To obtain the data, we focused on document analysis and discussion groups with students and teachers. Authors such as Garcia (1999 ) , Tardif (2011 ) , Masetto ( 2003, 2006 , 2007, 2009 , 2012) , Gatti (2010 ) , André ( 2005, 2009 , 2010) , Diniz - Pereira ( 2007, 2010 ) , Romanowski ( 2010, 2012 ) , Imbernon (2009 ) , Saviani ( 2005, 2009 ) , Tanuri (2000 ) , Carbonell (2002 ) , Silva (2007 ) , Moreira (2006 ) , Lopes and Macedo (2011 ) supported the construction of the theoretical framework concept that guided the research from theirs theories on innovation , teacher formation and curriculum. The data indicate that the curriculum reform in progress manifests with characteristic movements of change with innovation in a set of core and relevant elements such as design and curriculum organization , teaching knowledge , models of formation , practical activities / stage and methodological principles. The character of building in movement of the curriculum, open to the collective intelligence of educators in their institutional contexts find room for diversification and innovation, confronts us with the possibility of a new paradigm in process. Thus, this research contributes to the field of curriculum theory and practice analysis to bring an experience that puts into action directions that have long putting to the curricula in initial teacher development / A recorrente denúncia de que o preparo oferecido nos cursos de formação inicial não tem oferecido respostas adequadas às novas exigências do trabalho dos professores na sociedade contemporânea e aos desafios enfrentados pelos docentes em suas práticas cotidianas tem colocado em questão a revisão dos currículos que formam esses profissionais. Nesse contexto, o presente estudo tem como objetivo a análise crítica de uma organização curricular alternativa que vem sendo desenvolvida nos cursos de formação inicial de professores, mais especificamente, em cursos de Licenciaturas de Ciências, Artes e Linguagem e Comunicação da Universidade Federal do Paraná - Unidade Litoral. Para isso, escolheu-se como questão orientadora investigar em que medida a proposta que vem sendo desenvolvida na UFPR Litoral traz elementos com potencial de contribuição para um novo paradigma curricular na formação inicial de professores. Adota-se como caminho metodológico para este estudo a abordagem qualitativa de pesquisa na modalidade de estudo de caso. Para obtenção dos dados, privilegiou-se a análise documental e grupos de discussão com alunos e professores. Autores como Garcia (1999), Tardif (2011), Masetto (2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012), Gatti (2010), André (2005, 2009, 2010), Diniz-Pereira (2007, 2010), Romanowski (2010, 2012), Imbernón (2009), Saviani (2005, 2009), Tanuri (2000), Carbonell (2002), Silva (2007), Moreira (2006), Lopes e Macedo (2011) deram suporte à construção do marco teórico conceitual que orientou a pesquisa a partir de suas teorias sobre inovação, formação de professores e currículo. Os dados indicam que a reforma curricular em andamento se manifesta com movimentos de mudança com característica de inovação em um conjunto de elementos centrais e relevantes, tais como concepção e organização curricular, saberes docentes, modelos de formação, atividades práticas/estágio e princípios metodológicos. O caráter de construção em movimento do currículo, aberto para que a inteligência coletiva dos educadores em seus contextos institucionais encontre espaço para a diversificação e a inovação, coloca-nos diante da possibilidade de um novo paradigma em processo. Dessa forma, essa pesquisa contribui para o campo da teoria e das práticas curriculares ao trazer para análise uma experiência que coloca em ação direcionamentos que há tempos vêm se colocando para os currículos na formação inicial de professores