Abstract not available. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of Natal, 1960.

This study sought to understand what training and development the teachers experienced through the cascade model. In asking the question, “Does the cascade model work for teachers?” I produced data through the exploration of the experiences of teachers, whose training for the implementation of the Integrated Quality Management System at schools was through the cascade model. The critical questions posed in the study were, firstly, what are the building blocks that constitute the cascade model? Secondly, how did the School Training Teams experience their training and development on the cascade model, based on the core guiding principles? Thirdly, what are the experiences of teachers at school level, on their training and development by School Training Teams for the implementation of IQMS? Using Zeichner’s paradigms of teacher development (1993) as the theoretical lens through which to understand how training and development was experienced through the cascade model, I read and interpreted the workings of the model in terms of the four paradigmatic positionings – Traditional-craft, behaviorist, personalistic and inquiry oriented perspectives. Using a descriptive qualitative approach, I accessed three high schools in the Port Shepstone District to participate in this study. The data sources used to produce the data included the IQMS Provincial Training Manual (used by the provincial facilitators for the training of School Training Teams); individual semi-structured interviews of the Provincial IQMS facilitators; interviews of the School Training Team members who were responsible for cascading IQMS to teachers at school level, and survey questionnaires to teachers of the schools that participated in this study. The findings of the study show that the process of teacher development through the cascade model has not only resulted in the teachers engaging in ‘strategic simulation’ about change and ‘intensification’ of the work they do, but has to a greater extent, also led to teacher de-professionalization. Although ‘disruption’ was unearthed in the middle tiers of the cascade, by and large, the intent of change at both levels, bureaucratic and school, was tactical and strategically simulated. I conclude that the continued employment of the cascade as the model for teacher development and training perpetuates a technicist approach of what it means to be a teacher and reduces teachers work to a de-intellectualising practice. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2008.

Within the restructuring agenda of post apartheid South Africa was the national educational agenda which included the upgrading and re-skilling of teachers. One of the programmes identified and developed nationally was National professional Diploma in Education (NPDE) to upgrade the teaching qualifications of under- qualified educators and later un-qualified educators. Within this programme, re-skilling of these educators was also targeted to assist the Department of Education to implement its new school curriculum. Many cohorts have graduated from this programme since the inception of the NPDE in 2002. It is now the time to ask the question “Did the NPDE make any impact in the lives of educators?” The study seeks to offer an understanding of an understanding of the programme within the rural context by asking the following questions: 1. Is the NPDE making any difference in the rural areas- what do graduates and schools in these contexts have to say? In this study, a tracer study of graduates in the Singane area (name created for this study) will be presented to teachers’ (NPDE graduates) experiences of the programme and its benefit to their personal and professional development? 2. Is the NPDE meeting the challenges of the systemic intervention- a curriculum analysis? This study also explores how both the curriculum design and context addressed the needs of the teachers in rural context like Singane. Through a curriculum analysis of the NPDE, the design and delivery are put under scrutiny to explore the relationship between the NPDE’s intentions and what actually. / Thesis (M.Ed.) - University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2009.

There is no abstract available for this thesis.

There is no abstract available for this dissertation.

The purpose of the study was to develop an effective method of facilitating intercultural communication and understanding for school personnel (administrators, counselors, teachers) and to design a training tool which would assist in this task.Based on the body of literature in theory, research, and training of intercultural communication, the study synthesized the findings to determine the most effective methodology to accomplish this purpose.The following research questions were studied:1. What are the barriers to effective intercultural communication?2. What is the most effective intercultural training model (in terms of learner achievement of competencies)?3. How does one become an independent, effective intercultural communicator (what are the competencies, attributes, specific knowledge, and behaviors)?4.How does one evaluate one's competency and effectiveness in intercultural communication?1. Barriers to effective intercultural communicationwere identified as: language and non-verbal communication problems, preconceived ideas and stereotypes, ethnocentrism, differences in learning and approach to problem solving, differences in values and beliefs, lack of knowledge about oneself and others, perceptual distortions, role prescriptions, differences in individuals, past experiences, and technology.2. Several intercultural training models were analyzed: intellectual, area training, self-awareness, cultural awareness, multidimensional, developmental experiential, intercultural sensitizer, culture-general assimilator, and independent effectiveness. The author developed the SSSSS (SixStep Sequential Self-Structured) Model which integrated intellectual and experiential learning.A training tool was also developed, a videotape, which presented incidents of intercultural interaction. The video, entitled Creating Empathy Through Film, is to be used in conjunction with the SSSSS Model as a means of training school personnel in effective intercultural communication.3.Competencies of independent, effective interculturalcommunicators were identified as: understanding one's own cultural background and the backgrounds of those who areculturally different, openness, tolerance of differences, empathy, flexibility, global awareness, ability to cope in stressful situations, and the capability to function effectively in multicultural environments.4. The self-evaluation method developed for trainees uses three concentric circles within which gummed tabs are placed. This evaluative method will enable trainees to measure their own effectiveness in intercultural communication in terms of attitudes, behaviors, and knowledge. / Department of Secondary, Higher, and Foundations of Education

The purpose of this study was to see if student teachers could bridge the gap between what is taught in higher education courses and what they observe practiced in primary school classrooms by implementing developmentally appropriate practices through the use of the Project Approach promoted by Lilian Katz and Sylvia Chard. Issues and attitudes that developed were also reviewed.Two student teachers provided the data for this qualitative study. The case studies consisted of interviews, observations, and documentation examination. Positive attitudes toward research and theory emerged. Issues that were identified included time, writing lesson plans, lack of a model, and the student teaching triad. Despite the issues it was determined that providing a framework to implement theory assists student teachers when they attempt to implement theory. In this particular study, providing the framework of the Project Approach aided the student teachers in implementing developmentally appropriate practices. / Department of Elementary Education

There is no abstract available for this dissertation.

The Scientific Attitude Inventory, TSAI, was developed in an attempt to measure the Scientific Attitude of elementary teachers. Form D, the form used with the study population, was developed through a refinement technique involving three pre-test forms, Forms A, B, and C.From an original pool of items, fifty-three items were selected to constitute Form A. Form A was constructed and administered to a pre-test population for the purpose of refinement of individual items from the item pool. On the basis of an item analysis of the responses by the pre-test population, several of the items were revised.The revised items from Form A, together with newly written items constituted Form B. Form B was administered to a second pre-test population for the purpose of refinement of individual items. Several items of Form B were revised on the basis of an item analysis.The set of items which resulted from the pre-testing of Forms A and B, revised as appropriate, were submitted to a panel of judges in order to establish a response key and content validity of the items for the purpose of measuring the Scientific Attitude.Those items which were judged to have content validity constituted Form C. Form C was administered to a third pretest population in order to identify the set of items to be used in Form D, the form used with the study population.The identification of the set of items from Form C to be used in Form D was accomplished through a series of reductions in the number of items in Form C. On the basis of an item analysis, the items with the lowest item validity indices were removed from the instrument. The resultant version was scored and an item analysis made unisg the new instrument as the criterion measure. This procedure was repeated until diminishing returns were noticed in the split-halves reliability. The 45 items of Form C which produced the highest split-halves reliability were used in Form D and constituted Version 45 C.Inspection of the 45 items of Form C which were used in Form D revealed that with but one exception, the items which produced the highest item validity indices were items keyed "disagree." Therefore, in the construction of Form D, 25 additional items were uted keyed "agree" in order to achieve an apparent balance in the response key.A 70 item instrument, Form d, was administered to the study population of 224 elementary teachers in graduate study at the masters level in the Elementary Education Department of Ball State University, Muncie, Indiana, during the Summer of 1969. The administration of Form D provided data and Norms of Performance for Form D, Version 45 C. This version of TSAI yielded a split-halves reliability of 0.72 with the study population.The complete 70 item instrument was also scored and analysed. Further, a series of reductions in the number of items, refining the form as an internal criterion measure of validity, was effected in the same manner as was used with Form C. Diminishing returns in split-halves reliability was seen beyond the 45 item set, identified as Form D, Version 45. This version yielded a split-halves reliability of 0.80. Version 65 of Form D, and each subsequent version in the reduction series yielded split-halves reliabilities equal to, or exceeding, 0.70, the minimum level of reliability specified in the design of the study. Norms of performance were compiled from the administration of Form D to the study population for each of the versions which yielded a reliability equal to, or greater than, 0.70.

Systemic educational reforms entail major changes at the different levels of the system, of which classroom practice is ultimately crucial to obtaining the desired output. Within this paradigm shift, experienced teachers have to replace what they are likely to consider good teaching and learning approaches with unfamiliar strategies. Continuing professional teacher development (CPTD) plays a key role in successfully changing classroom practices. This in-depth case study research —six teachers in two different countries, Canada and South Africa—looks into the information acquisition process of instructors. Interviews were performed at different levels of the educational system – policy makers, pedagogic/subject advisors as well as teachers for which questionnaires and classroom observation were also used to collect data. A research-based analytical tool developed by Laura Desimone (Desimone, 2009) guided the exploration of the vast data collected and served as the analytical framework for the various data sources, drawing a link between the intended, implemented and attained policies. The thorough discourse analysis situated in the interpretivist framework gives global insight into the teachers’ perception of the impact of CPTD as it enables a deep understanding of the information acquisition and utilization by teachers. The examination of teachers’ pedagogical content knowledge in different reform contexts brings a profound perspective on how professional development activities contribute to the professional capital of educators, as envisaged by Hargreaves and Fullan (2012). Data suggest that policies related to professional development are adequate in Québec and in South Africa, but that planning around implementation is hasty or lacking altogether. Regardless of the socio-economic environment and the professional development accessibility, teachers do not perceive CPTD as being a major vector of change and they were found to lack the necessary capacity to change their practices to reflect their beliefs. Finally, teachers reported that the most influential factor on practices is the availability of teaching and learning material and learners’ reaction to it. In conclusion, in the two contexts observed, CPTD was not emphasised to the level required for a paradigm change such as constructivist-based systemic reforms. I suggest adapting CPTD delivery methods to teachers’ need by ensuring widespread and reform-aligned professional development. In addition, access to information through appropriate teaching materials combined with appealing and applicable activities should be facilitated. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2013.