Executive summary This study explores the learner centred teaching practices in secondary schools in Tanzania. The basis of this research emanated from the problem of the poor performance of secondary school students in Tanzania. The performance of students in national examinations has declined over the past years. This trend shows an increase in the number of students who are failing. The analysis of the examination results indicates that several secondary schools are in a poor situation. Poor performance signifies that many students have failed to acquire the requisite knowledge, skills, and competences to function effectively in society as well as in socioeconomic development. In general, the preceding situation proves that the quality of education has been affected and there is a need for conducting research. The literature indicates that scholars have been conducting educational research to find effective methods of improving students’ performance. To accomplish this aim researchers of IEA (International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement), international organizations, and universities have been carrying out extensive studies to examine students’ performance in the areas of science, mathematics, and reading in various national and cultural contexts. Educators have produced results showing that countries such as Finland, South Korea, and Shanghai-China lead the world in terms of student performance. The factors mentioned to account for good performance include hard work by students, positive attitude of students’, effective engagement in the classrooms, schools emphasis on academic success, well-resourced schools, well-trained teachers, and favourable working conditions. In order to improve the problem of poor performance, the literature suggested researchers should mainly examine the learner centred teaching practices in the classrooms. This advice is in line with the goals of various educational programs such as World Education Forums, Tanzania Development Vision 2025, Secondary Education Development Program, and Education Sector Development Program. In addition, the process of transfer and borrowing of policies and practices from Western and European countries to different national and cultural contexts compelled the introduction of learner centred teaching practices. These practices have been supported because they put students at the center of the learning process. They focus on the interest of students and create a positive environment for learning. They facilitate active teaching and learning methods. The practices have a connection to constructivist theory which emphasizes students’ construction of meaning and understanding. The characteristics of the theory are preferred because they should improve educational research, curriculum implementation and students performance in different national and cultural contexts. Despite effectiveness of constructivist theory, educators and practitioners challenged characteristics associated with this theory. It does not provide thorough instructions on how to employ in the classrooms. It does not guide teachers on the appropriate learner centred teaching practices applied in various stages of the lesson development. It is in this background that the current study identified a research gap and area of contribution. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to explore the manner in which secondary school teachers make use of learner centred teaching practices in various stages of lesson development. Specifically, the study explored teachers’ perceptions of the learner centred teaching. It also explored the teachers’ practices and perceptions of the learner centred teaching practices in various stages of the lesson development. Likewise, the study sought to examine the kind of support teachers need to facilitate learner centered teaching practices. It should be recognized that practices and perceptions are essential for providing a thorough understanding of these practices in the classrooms. To achieve the above purpose, this study sought to answer the following research questions: 1. How do secondary school teachers in Tanzania perceive the learner centred teaching? 2. How do secondary school teachers in Tanzania employ the learner centred teaching practices in different stages of the lesson development? 3. How do secondary school teachers in Tanzania perceive the learner centred teaching practices in different stages of the lesson development? 4. What support do secondary school teachers in Tanzania need to enhance their learner centred teaching practices? Concerning the research methodology, this study consulted previous studies carried out in one country and those in various national and cultural contexts. The purpose was to examine and learn how past studies were designed, conducted, and achieved the research objectives. The researcher intended to choose the methodology that manages and controls complexities occurring during the teaching and learning in the classrooms and might affect the data collection. The methodology had to produce a thorough understanding of teachers’ practices and perceptions. This criterion compelled the study to adopt a qualitative design. Scholars insist that classroom practices be studied properly by qualitative design. This design is effective to provide an understanding of the people, contexts, practices, and interactions. This study applied the ethnographic approach to explore the learner centred teaching practices extensively and in a natural classroom setting. The ethnographic approach enabled examining cultural attributes such as practices and perceptions as manifesting in the classrooms. It facilitated the acquisition of information that produced thick descriptions of learner centred teaching practices. In sampling, this study focused to select poor-performing schools that implement learner centred teaching. Teachers were chosen purposively to provide rich information needed to fulfil the purpose of the study. The data collection was conducted between November 2014 and March 2015. Afterward, the researcher continued to capture information from teachers to enrich the database. In the period between December 2015 and January 2016, teachers were given the chance to authenticate the findings. During the fieldwork, the researcher executed a series of activities in line with ethical principles. The data collection methods applied participant observations and semi structured interviews. The data was analyzed by thematic analysis and produced findings in terms of themes. Themes have been connected to the implementation of learner centred teaching practices in the classrooms. The analysis followed steps such as organizing the data for familiarization, reading the data thoroughly, writing and coding the transcripts/texts, formulating the themes, interpreting the meaning, and doing a repetition movement between findings and the database. The main findings of the study reveal that teachers’ perceptions of learner centred teaching exhibited various views. The perceptions and practices towards the learner centred teaching in various stages of the lesson development displayed mixed practices. In this view, the findings on practices (what teachers practiced) and perceptions (what teachers reported) fall into three categories: Those aligned with the learner centred are described as discussing, demonstrating, homework, ongoing assessment, higher-order questioning, asking various questions, interactive seating arrangement, passing to groups during the discussion, teaching a small piece of content, and students presentation. Those aligned with the teacher centred are described as lecturing, reading textbooks, end of period assessment, lower-order questioning, neglecting students’ views, and traditional seating arrangement. Also, practices created by teachers include students marking for themselves, slow students acting as indicators of learning and understanding, examining notes, involving few students, performing questions on the chalkboard, watching the entire class, and remedial teaching (these were created due to various reasons). To support teachers in executing learner centred practices, improvement is needed in the aspects such as in-service training, school based training, teachers’ welfare, teaching materials, producing more science teachers, and testing students frequently. The researcher discussed findings by relating and comparing them with various research studies with reference to the implementation of learner centred teaching practices. In general, the research findings showed that teachers display similar as well as different educational practices. This study realizes the research gap and addresses theoretical and empirical contributions. Regarding theory, the literature indicated that the constructivist theory lacks clear instructions on how teachers should employ learner centred teaching practices in various stages of lesson development. This study addresses the gap by providing a broad understanding of the learner centred teaching practices applied by teachers in various stages of lesson development. To accomplish that aim, the study suggests proper constructivist and learner centred practices for guiding teachers in the classrooms (see Appendix VIII).:TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Executive summary ii-vi Zusammenfassung vii-xi Acknowledgement xii Dedication xiii List of acronyms xiv Table of contents xv-xviii List of Tables xix List of Figures xx CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background of the study 1 1.2 Statement of the problem 9 1.3 Purpose and research questions 10 1.4 Significance of the study 10 CHAPTER TWO: COMPARATIVE EDUCATION AND TRANSNATIONAL TRANSFER OF EDUCATIONAL POLICIES AND THE LEARNER CENTERED TEACHING PRACTICES 2.1 Introduction 13 2.2 Comparative education 13 2.3 The transnational transfer of policies and practices 17 2.4 Comparative education in Tanzania 21 2.5 Curriculum reform in Tanzania 24 2.6 The learner centred teaching practices and its empirical research in Tanzania 28 2.7 Comparative education research about the learner centred teaching 35 CHAPTER THREE: THE CONSTRUCTIVIST THEORY AND THE LEARNER CENTERED TEACHING PRACTICES 3.1 Introduction 39 3.2 An overview of the teaching theory 39 3.3 The constructivist theory and its characteristics 40 3.4 Learner centered teaching practices 53 3.5 Empirical research about the learner centered teaching practices 70 3.6 Other aspects related to the implementation of the learner centered teaching practices 75 3.7 Teacher centered practices 80 3.8 Different stages of the lesson development as applied in teaching and learning practices 83 CHAPTER FOUR: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 4.1 Introduction 90 4.2 Overview of the background of study and the research questions and methodology 90 4.3 Research design 92 4.4 Research approach 95 4.5 Sampling methods 96 4.6 Pilot study 98 4.7 Data collection methods 100 4.8 Data analysis 107 4.9 Ethical and consent treatments 114 4.10 Quality criteria considered in this study 115 CHAPTER FIVE: FINDINGS OF THE STUDY 5.1 Introduction 118 5.2 Perceptions regarding the stages during the teaching and learning process 118 5.3 Presentation of findings that follow the stated cases 120 Teacher A 122 Teacher B 135 Teacher C 149 Teacher D 162 5.4 The learner centred teaching practices on the reflection stage 174 5.5 How students are involved in the learner centred teaching practices 178 5.6 Support to improve the learner centred teaching practices 180 CHAPTER SIX: DISCUSSION OF THE FINDINGS 6.1 Introduction 183 6.2 Overview of the discussion of findings 183 6.3 Perceptions regarding the learner centered teaching 184 6.4 Learner centred teaching practices employed in different stages of the lesson development ….188 6.5 Learner centred teaching practices employed in the reflection stage 203 6.6 How students are involved in the visited classrooms 205 6.7 Support to improve the learner centered teaching practices 207 CHAPTER SEVEN: CONCLUDING PERSPECTIVES AND RECOMMENDATIONS 7.1 Introduction 212 7.2 Concluding perspectives 212 7.3 Limitations of the study 217 7.4 Recommendations 219 References 221 Appendix I: Classroom observation schedule 248 Appendix II: Semi structured interview for teachers 257 Appendix III: Permission letter from regional education officer 273 Appendix IV: Consent letter from teacher A 274 Appendix V: Consent letter from teacher B 274 Appendix VI: Consent letter from teacher C 275 Appendix VII: Consent letter from teacher D 275 Appendix VIII: Guidelines to consider for preparing, executing and assessing the learner centered teaching practices 276 Schriftliche Erklärung 277

This narrative inquiry study collected stories from parents and teachers to build a deep understanding of the lived experiences of raising or teaching children affected by traumatic grief. Research shows that children who experience adversity or loss as trauma, including childhood traumatic grief, may experience long- term disruptions to executive functions and present learning, behavioural and social challenges within school settings. Current research indicates that the adoption of trauma-informed care practices within schools can successfully support students who have experienced trauma and/or childhood traumatic grief. In particular, the development of strong family-school collaboration, understood recently as a form of working alliance, is key in effectively supporting students experiencing mental health issues, including childhood traumatic grief. Using a narrative inquiry approach, this study shares the stories of three women, a mother, a teacher by profession, and a mother who is a teacher by profession, to develop deep understanding of what is being experienced in supporting children affected by childhood traumatic stress and grief. The findings from this study affirmed the need for increased understanding and awareness of the ways that trauma can impact the education of children affected by trauma. The findings also confirmed that insecure attachments can be mitigated with consistent and attuned care. To do this effectively as educators, there is need for increased resources and supports within the schools. This study confirmed the need for increased collaboration to develop strong relationships between students, parents and teachers. The need for collaboration is essential for the successful support of students struggling with the affects of trauma and these findings affirm current conversations on the importance of trauma-informed approaches, relational schools and working alliances.

The ability to think critically is considered an essential skill of nursing graduates and competent nursing practice. Yet, the literature reports that teachers are having difficulty teaching for critical thinking and that critical thinking is lacking in new nursing graduates. This research study sought to identify barriers to the implementation of critical thinking teaching strategies by nursing faculty currently teaching in generic baccalaureate programs in Tennessee. Surveys were mailed to 262 nursing faculty; 194 were returned, and 175 were usable. Students' attitudes and expectations represented the single greatest barrier to the implementation of critical thinking teaching strategies, followed by time constraints and the perceived need to teach for content coverage. Recommendations to support and encourage faculty to teach for critical thinking are outlined.

Education for sustainable development (ESD) faces the enormous challenge of educating students to handle so called wicked problems, i.e., problems that lack true or false solutions and with inherent conflicts of interests and which characterizes the great questions of our time. ESD is internationally a diverse practice with many different approaches to the challenge described above. At the same time the United Nations among others emphasizes the crucial role of educations in developing the action competence needed for the transformation of society towards a more sustainable world. A unique student led initiative started at Uppsala university as a counter-reaction to prevailing traditions within higher education and with the goal of creating an education that does not destroy the planet. The purpose of this study is to generate knowledge about this student led teaching practice by investigating two aspects of learning that are key in developing desired action competences: firstly, desired subject positions which then will be discussed in the light of the second aspect desired educational functions. The study makes use of three central theoretical and methodological perspectives that has shaped the design of the study; Dewey’s transactional perspective is used as an overall starting point that enables an in situ study of actions. Foucault’s conception of power and governance is used to understand how power – in the sense of “actions upon actions” – is manifested in the educational practice. And to make visible and discuss how ESD functions in the teaching practice in relation to the aims of that practice, Biesta’s three dimensions of educational functions – education as qualification, socialization and subjectification, is being used. In accordance with these theoretical perspectives and the aim of the study a qualitative case study of group discussions in the student led classroom was conducted using audio- and video recordings during a university course. The student transactions were analyzed in two steps. The first step consisted of an overall analysis of the explicit aim or focus of the teaching practice where three main focus was found; “learning from each other”, “taking a stand” and “to be critical and creative”. The second step consisted of a specified analysis of desired subject positions which were then discussed in the light of educational functions. Here the students’ actions were found to limit their own and each other’s learning processes, by for instance avoiding conflicting views and facts. The analysis also shows how the students’ emotional reactions on the other hand enable their own and each other’s learning processes by creating “interruptions” thus making space for an existential dimension of environmental and sustainability issues. Education as qualification and socialization often was put to the foreground in the practice. But in the students’ transactions in their group discussions two unique tools for learning was identified which teachers may not possess, and which have the potential to enable room for subjectification. These tools were identified as the student’s possibility to be private and to have continuous conversations.

Academic coaching has demonstrated positive relationships with college students' academic engagement and performance. A university campus in Puerto Rico implemented academic coaching for at-risk students, but the program has not been studied for its impact on student engagement. Guided by self-regulation theory and constructivism, this quasi-experimental study examined differences in engagement and identification of best teaching behaviors between students who experienced academic coaching (n = 115) and those who did not (n = 55). Students completed the Classroom Survey of Student Engagement (CLASSE) before and after the 4-week instructional unit and the Instructor Behavior Checklist (IBC) after the instructional unit. The data from the CLASSE and IBC were analyzed using mixed analysis of variance for engagement activities and student identification of effective teaching practices. There were no significant findings relating academic coaching to engagement; however, the experimental group identified significantly more best teaching practices used by their instructor. A Pearson correlation also yielded a significant positive relationship between students' engagement and the identification of instructor best practices. Based on these findings, a professional development program was created for instructors, which fosters student engagement and learning by encouraging instructor best practices through a classroom coaching model. The findings from this study may promote positive social change by helping to prepare faculty to integrate academic coaching and best teaching practices related to student engagement.

Eleven Canadian public university educators who used OERs in their teaching practices were interviewed about their lived experiences with obstacles and affordances encountered when adopting, modifying, and/or creating OERs. The reflective lifeworld phenomenological approach was used for data collection and analysis. The results were viewed through self-determination theory’s regulatory styles. Educators reflected on their experiences with several obstacles including, lack of time, perceived poor quality of OER textbooks, and difficulties using Pressbooks to modify and/or create OER textbooks, even though the educators appeared to have good technology skills. OER affordances included the ability to modify resources, OERs were easy to find, and OERs aligned with the participants’ teaching practices. Results found educators were motivated to use OERs primarily to ease their students’ financial burdens and have up-to-date teaching and learning material. All participants were externally motivated to engage with OERs and two were intrinsically motivated when creating OERs. The essential meaning of the phenomenon is understood as a device rooted in educators’ motivation to support students beyond the classroom. This research contributes to the growing body of qualitative OER research. The results and recommendations may be useful to educators who are considering using OERs and to teaching and learning centres that support OER use. / Graduate

Schools face the problem of recruiting and retaining students in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) degrees. One reason that students leave STEM fields is because their introductory classes are too hard or not engaging. These introductory classes are typically taught using a lecture-heavy, instructor-centered approach, contrary to current evidence based pedagogy. Many who call for teacher reform put the blame on the way teachers are educated, which is often not student-centered, citing that because ‘teachers teach the way they were taught,’ current education is also not student-centered. The idea that ‘teachers teach the way they were taught’ is commonly used to promote an agenda for improved teaching training and accepted as fact in the scientific literature. However, little empirical data has been collected to support this conclusion. We aimed first to determine empirically if teachers teach the way they were taught, and second to determine the influences behind teaching practices. We observed, surveyed, and interviewed a sample of 44 instructors at seven colleges and universities throughout the state of Utah who taught select STEM introductory courses. Instruments used included observational, survey, and interview protocols developed specifically for this study during preliminary trials, and inspired by the Reformed Teaching Observation Protocol (RTOP). A paired t-test was used to compare the professors’ teaching practices with their own educational experiences. Interview responses were then grouped into common categories and used to determine the influences behind teaching practices. We discovered that there is a significant difference between how teachers teach and how they were taught during their own educational experience. This finding does not support our hypothesis that teachers teach the way they were taught. Qualitative data from interviews introduces a new hypothesis that teachers teach the way they themselves preferred to be taught, or the way they think students learn best, demonstrating that teachers are taking a much more metacognitive approach to teaching than is suggested by that famous quote, ‘teachers teach the way they were taught.’ Our results suggest that reform classes and workshops develop a more metacognitive approach to exposing future teachers to current, evidence based pedagogy, allowing teachers to reflect on their own learning and experience for themselves the benefits of student-centered learning. These future teachers will then apply what they learn if they are convinced it is a better way to teach students. They will teach the way they were taught because they experienced a positive experience when leaning.

This thesis examines the promise and problems of memoir in the pedagogy and practices of teaching memoir in college composition. I interviewed three University of Central Florida instructors who value memoir in composition, and who at the time of this study, were mandated to teach memoir in their composition courses. The interviews focus on three main points of interest: (1) the instructors’ motivations behind their teaching of memoir, (2) how these instructors see memoir functioning in their classes, and (3) what these instructors hope their students will gain in the process of writing the memoir essay. By analyzing these interviews, I was better able to understand the three instructors’ pedagogical choices and rationales for teaching memoir in their classes. I have also collected data and research from scholarly journal articles, books, and from my experiences teaching memoir in the composition classroom. This thesis challenges the widely accepted notion that memoir and the personal in composition scholarship, pedagogy, and teaching practices are “‘touchy-feely,’ ‘soft,’ ‘unrigorous,’ ‘mystical,’ ‘therapeutic,’ and ‘Mickey Mouse’” ways of meaning-making and teaching writing (Tompkins 214). My findings show that memoir in the classroom is richer and far more complex than it might appear at first, and that the teaching of memoir in composition can, in fact, be greater than the memoir essay itself. Even though each instructor I interviewed values the personal and believes memoir belongs in composition curriculum, it turns out that none of these instructors’ core reasons for teaching memoir was so his or her students could master writing the memoir essay, although this was important; rather the memoir essay ultimately served in the instructors’ classrooms as a conduit through which they ultimately could teach more diverse writing skills and techniques as well as intellectual concepts that truly inspired them. Since the teaching of memoir seems to be even iv more dynamic and versatile in process and pedagogy than many of the other essay genres traditionally taught in college composition, this thesis makes recommendations for how memoir needs to be viewed, written about, and taught in order to harness the promise of this essay genre more consistently in the discussion of composition pedagogy and in the teaching of memoir to our students in the composition classroom.

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The intent of this two-phase, sequential explanatory mixed methods study was to examine the role teachers' beliefs play when making instructional decisions. The population included in-service teachers representing four Career and Technical Education disciplines located within the commonwealth of Virginia. Using a stratified random sample, 622 teachers were selected for the quantitative strand, and employing a system of four contacts, quantitative data were collected from 292 participants. Dweck's Theories of Intelligence scale assessed the nature of in-service teachers' beliefs about intelligence, and the Epistemic Belief Inventory was used to measure their epistemological beliefs. Finally, the participants rated their use of teacher-centered and student-centered teaching methods. In the second phase, qualitative data were collected from nine participants to further understand how in-service teachers' beliefs are related to the teaching practices they use. The quantitative and qualitative data were combined to determine if the descriptions of teaching method used, beliefs about intelligence, and epistemological beliefs aligned with the outcomes of the quantitative questionnaire. Significant correlations existed between the Theories of Intelligence scale and the Epistemic Belief Inventory. A significant positive relationship existed between the Epistemic Beliefs Inventory and the overall teaching practices score, indicating in-service teachers' advanced epistemological beliefs are related to the use of student-centered teaching practices. A regression analysis indicated that teaching discipline, epistemological beliefs, teaching experience, and highest level of education completed predicted the teaching practices in-service teachers' select. The qualitative data supported the claim that beliefs about intelligence and epistemological beliefs influence teaching practices. Six themes emerged from the qualitative data, and the themes were used as a framework for organizing the findings. The researcher acknowledges that teachers possess a variety of beliefs, and those beliefs influence how teachers teach. The researcher recommends that teacher educators attempt to identify the beliefs pre-service teachers hold, and if modifications of beliefs are needed, facilitate interventions to modify those beliefs. While some have labeled the direct relationship between teacher beliefs and teaching practices as "messy", the evidence indicates the two, are in fact, related. / Ph. D.