The aim of this research was to determine the motivation levels of Zimbabwean rural secondary school teachers, and to identify and discuss the factors that influence their motivation so that management interventions could be designed to enhance teacher motivation. A quantitative research design, involving the descriptive sample survey method to collect data by means of self-administered structured questionnaire was adopted. The sample consisted of 175 rural secondary school teachers in Bikita District. The information was statistically analysed with the aid of a computer after which it was interpreted. Results indicated that teachers were not highly motivated and satisfied with their jobs, and that their motivation was affected by several aspects of their work. Working conditions emerged as a primary demotivator while interpersonal relations was a principal motivator. The data also showed that certain biographical variables affected teacher motivation significantly. Subsequent to these results recommendations to enhance teacher motivation were made. / Educational Studies / M. Ed. (Education Management)

This study aims to investigate the attitudes to English homework held by teachers of primary school (Grades 4-6) in Mainland China, through an online survey. After obtaining 112 responses and analysing them by utilising both qualitative and quantitative methods, the results found that English teachers in China have a unified positive attitude towards homework and its effect. English homework is most commonly assigned once a day. Repetition or Exercise is the most popular type of assigned homework, and it is overwhelmingly preferred by the teachers, followed by Preparation and Reading. The respondents stress that homework has an indispensable connection with the scheduled school teaching. Through assigning the correct volume of homework, students can develop positive habits with regards to self-study, and therefore students can improve their academic performance in examinations. A combination of both oral and written feedback is utixlised the most. Follow-up of homework usually appears to be two-dimensional; material stimuli such as penalty copy and self-correction, and immaterial stimuli such as encouragement and criticism. All of the evidence shows that China’s particular education system reflects Skinner’s behaviourist theories of learning, meaning that students’ behaviour with regards to acquiring knowledge can be shaped by frequent and random reinforcement, and this behaviour will eventually persist in the long-term even in the absence of reinforcements.

Doctorat en Sciences Psychologiques et de l'éducation / info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

English language learners need teachers who are knowledgeable about the children they are teaching and they must be willing to learn more about their students' cultures, backgrounds and languages in order to make their educational experience meaningful.

No description available.

This study investigates teachers' attitudes towards aural recordings and written English from different English varieties in the Swedish upper primary school EFL-classroom. Data from 27 online surveys and four semi-structured interviews are analyzed. The results show that British and American English are the most accepted varitetis. Australian English is accepted in audio, though not necessarily recognized in writing. Indian English, while mostly recognized, is not as accepted. Swedish English, though still accepted by most, is the least approved of the studied varieties.

This study explored preschool teachers' perspectives on caring relationships and their perceptions of how such relationships affect children's autonomy and motivation in preschool in two cultural settings: one city in China and another in the U.S. Data was collected from preschool teachers in both locations using a qualitative interviewing research strategy. The study found that consensus exists among preschool teachers from the two cities about the importance of caring relationships, in which trust, acceptance, equality, and mutual respect were viewed as these relationships' primary characteristics. There were also shared values regarding teachers' roles and their effective strategies for establishing social skills and caring and sharing among children. Nevertheless, some underlying assumptions about caring, especially teachers' understandings of autonomy and motivation, differed somewhat in relation to the social, cultural, philosophical, or practical influences in the two cultural contexts. The results of the study provide opportunities for early childhood teachers and teacher educators in both contexts to reflect on their own assumptions about these values, as well as insights for preparing caring teachers in both cultural settings.

This qualitative, longitudinal study followed four first-year MA TESOL students through their initial year in a teacher training program with the goal of determining whether their overall beliefs about teaching and learning changed over time as a result of program curriculum and other outside factors. An analysis of semi-structured interviews with each participant, conducted one to two times per quarter, revealed that participants' beliefs appeared to evolve as a result of coursework and teaching practice. Participants' identities as teachers also showed signs of evolution and development. The participants attributed the majority of their development to hands-on teaching practice, though there was evidence that they began to integrate more theoretical aspects of program curriculum by the end of the year. However, the participants also demonstrated a lack of interest in theoretical and research-related coursework that persisted throughout their first year. Participants' lack of interest and stress brought on by unfamiliar material may have limited the amount of integration of research and theory into their practice. Findings suggest a mismatch between program goals and student goals, with students being focused on teaching practice and the program being focused on both the practical and theoretical aspects of the curriculum.

The entire context of South African education is undergoing a slow, yet definite metamorphosis, and inclusion is now nationally both a constitutional imperative and an unequivocal reality. Teachers are the key role-players in determining the quality of implementation of this new policy. They are expected to embrace the new philosophy, to think and to work in a new frame of reference. Unfortunately, too often change in education has failed because insufficient attention has been paid to the challenges posed to those who are expected to put the change into effect. Against this background the aim of this study is to determine the challenges posed to the teacher of the child with a hearing loss in inclusive education. In order to attain this aim, the study was divided into two sections: a literature study and an empirical study. The literature study offers a review of the development of the inclusive philosophy, with specific reference to the educational inclusion of the child with a hearing loss. The knowledge and attitude of teachers towards inclusive education as well the responsibilities of the teachers of a child with a hearing loss within the South African education system are critically discussed. During the empirical research a descriptive design was followed comprising of questionnaire surveys followed by focus group discussions. The questionnaire surveys explored the knowledge, attitudes and training needs of 220 teachers and 81 student teachers. Focus group discussions were conducted with four parents, five speech therapist/audiologist and four teachers (all actively involved in inclusion programmes) and these results were used to substantiate findings from the questionnaire survey. The results of this study indicate that the teachers in regular education as well as the student teachers had sufficient knowledge about the theoretical aspects of inclusion but they lack knowledge regarding the child with a hearing loss. Aspects that were significantly related to the teachers’ lack of knowledge were their unwillingness to include a child with hearing loss and to a lesser extent their years of teaching experience. It was clear that both the teachers and student teachers appear to have negative attitudes towards the inclusion of children with hearing loss. The negative attitudes of the teachers were, as in the case of knowledge, significantly related to their unwillingness to include a child with a hearing loss and their years of teaching experience, but also to their personal experience with hearing loss. The teachers and student teachers indicated specific needs in terms of further training and the content of training. A wide variety of demands that are posed to teachers with regard to the unique South African context were identified, for example lack of support, lack of training, high teacher/child ratios etc. The implications of this study, which amongst other factors include the motivation for the promotion of educational audiology in order to support and train the teachers of children with a hearing loss in inclusive education, are discussed. The education system is challenged to address the needs of teachers in order to ensure the successful implementation of inclusive education for children with hearing loss. / Thesis (DPhil (Communication Pathology))--University of Pretoria, 2004. / Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology / unrestricted

The purpose of this research was to gain insight into key factors contributing to the recruitment and retention of teachers of color in New York City, NY, with special attention to their identity formation and understanding of their professionalism as it relates to who they are and where they work. This research entails quantitative results from a survey of more than 100 public school teachers of different racial backgrounds, followed by in-depth interviews with 26 teachers of color across different social contexts of the New York City public school system. This research is grounded in a trifold conceptual framework based on identity formation, sociology of the professions, and critical race theory to examine the interwoven complexities of how teachers of color make meaning of their district and school work as it relates to their understanding of whether they are seen as professionals. This study seeks to address the gap between the current body of literature about the recruitment and retention of teachers of color and the lived experiences of teachers of color in New York City working in the post-No Child Left Behind education policy context. In the first survey phase of this study, participants are asked a series of questions about their perceptions of their sense of professionalism, including their relationships to other school community members and other parts of their work. In the qualitative, interview phase of this project, participants were asked to make meaning of the different facets of their work and the impact they have on their professional identity development, the role of racial and cultural identity in their endeavors, and how their social context informs these understandings. The research was conducted to help fill a consequential gap in the extant research literature on the role that race plays in the career prospects of teachers of color, how they see themselves and believe they are seen by others as professionals and people, and how that connects to larger policy questions about the recruitment and retention of teachers of color. The research finds that the field of education has severely under-researched the role of race and social context in their professional identity formation and in the sociology of professions. Almost all of the teachers of color in the study operate with a sense of professionalism that both allows them to survive and, in some cases, thrive despite and, in many cases, because of their working conditions. Their concentric professionalism – the confluence of preparation, dedication, and motivation, layered with their racial and cultural identities – is centered on the children (particularly of color) and communities they serve across contexts. This also demonstrates how, regardless of teachers’ expertise and experience, school as both a network of intertwined relationships and school as a tapestry of policies and practices can either elevate or decimate a sense of professionalism for teachers of color. Taken holistically, we have a plethora of evidence suggesting that teachers of color are ready, willing, and able to apply appropriate practice to their work. Yet so much of the onus to professionalize comes from people, policies, and ideas that obfuscate what it means to be professional.