This study identified the types of sexist language that appear in ESL textbooks by Thai authors. The study analyzed the ESL textbooks by Thai authors sold at the Chulalongkorn University bookstore during spring 2007. It was a qualitative case analysis of fifteen ESL textbooks covering the beginning, intermediate, and advanced levels of ESL instruction. The study used feminist criticism to discover what gender roles are sanctioned as appropriate in ESL textbooks by Thai authors and if the language used supports or challenges patriarchy. The results of this study show that sexist language is present in the textbooks and that the textbooks contain content that promotes sexist assumptions concerning gender roles. As a whole, the language and examples used in ESL textbooks by Thai authors support patriarchy.

The study aims to examine the extent to which considerations of syllabus design and materials development are employed in a grade 9 English textbook of Ethiopia- English for Ethiopia: Secondary English Course: Grade 9 Students Book with particular emphasis on Multiple Intelligence Theory (MIT).The study is an evaluation research which makes use of a mixed method approach. Data were collected using interviews, coding form and a teachers’ questionnaire. The study involved English language syllabus writers in the Ministry of Education in Ethiopia. Furthermore, 50% of the contents of the Grade 9 English Textbook (6 of 12) were used for content analysis. In addition, 218 Grade 9 English teachers from fifty high schools that were drawn from 6 Regional States of the country responded to the questionnaire. In line with this, I collected quantitative data using a coding form and a questionnaire, as well as other forms of qualitative data using interview. Data were analysed both qualitatively and quantitatively. The study revealed that the syllabus writers used the competency-based approach in developing the Grade 9 English language syllabus. However, this approach has some drawbacks. On the one hand, competency-based education is a manifestation of the behaviouristic approach that is excessively reductionist, narrow, rigid and atomized; many areas in which people need certain competencies are impossible to operationalise; the approach does not clearly show how the list of competencies could be realised, how they should be formatted and presented so as to address learner differences. Above all, describing an activity in terms of a set of different competencies is not enough in order to deal with the complexity of the learning process as a whole. Regardless of these drawbacks, CBL was used to identify and list down the contents as well as the learning outcomes to be incorporated in the textbook. Thus, the how aspect remain obscured in that a theory driven approach to developing teaching/learning materials that meet learners' differences was not markedly taken note of as a guiding framework in developing the Grade 9 English language syllabus. The study showed that the great majority of the language tasks are meant to nurture verbal/linguistic intelligence followed by interpersonal and intrapersonal intelligences respectively. As a language textbook, it is good that it gives more coverage to these two intelligence profiles. When it comes to intentional application of principles of task design and materials development, many of the listening, reading and speaking lessons are appropriate in terms of providing comprehensible input, engaging students cognitively and affectively, promoting emotional/affective involvement and facilitating better language use. Similarly, visual imaging is also well taken care of with exception of few of the vocabulary and the grammar lessons. The study also revealed that the syllabus writers were well aware of the need of integrating various language skills, and it was found that the issue of using the integrated approach to ELT materials development was also well addressed and most of the language tasks are designed in an integrated manner with the exception of few of the vocabulary and the grammar lessons. Some drawbacks were also identified with few of the vocabulary and the grammar lessons in terms of providing comprehensible input and enhancing language use. On the other hand, as implementers of the textbook, the target schools’ Grade 9 English language teachers have a good understanding of language learning theories and task design principles. This understanding could help them design supplementary language tasks for their English classes. At last, conclusions are drawn and recommendations are given. / English Studies / D. Litt. et Phil. (English)

Bibliography: pages 82-84. / This dissertation is concerned with aspects of the role of the textbook in school mathematics. An attempt is made to uncover control strategies used by the teacher in textbook use in the classroom, and those implicit in a mathematics textbook. It is argued that these forms of regulation place constraints on the transformative role sometimes attributed to textbooks. The following research question is addressed: how does the teacher recruit the textbook in the classroom, how is he/she 'recruited' by it and how are both recruited by school mathematics? A case study methodology is described, involving a video-recording of a fifty minute mathematics lesson and a follow-up interview with the teacher. Transcriptions are used and a fine-grained analysis of data is attempted. A literature survey examines other research in the areas of content selection, content control and content expression. Content selection refers to choices and omissions, content control refers to sequencing, pacing and authority in the pedagogic relationship, and content expression includes verbal and textual modes of expressing content. Theoretical ideas are drawn from Bernstein (1976, 1991, 1993) and Dowling (1993). Although these works are methodologically different, they both describe aspects of regulation and control. Of particular interest are Bernstein's notions of classification and framing, and Dowling's ideas on discourse and procedure. The hypothesis is put forward here that there is a dialectical relationship involving the positioning of teacher and textbook. The teacher recruits the textbook to regulate pupils and knowledge, but s/he is at the same time constrained by strategies implicit in the textbook. In other words the teacher both positions and is positioned by the textbook. Both in tum are positioned by school mathematics. The data analysis examines the 'how', 'what' and 'who' of control. It considers the regulation of speech, silence, working and listening, as well as the sequencing, pacing, selecting, presenting and authorising of content. It argues that the teacher both recruits and is 'recruited' by the textbook, and that although the framing is strong and the teacher has a high degree of control in the pedagogic relationship, the classification is also strong and the teacher lacks control over what she can teach and the relationship between contents. The research concludes by suggesting that the transformative role sometimes attributed to the textbook is problematic. The strategies of regulation and control operating in the classroom, implicit in the textbook and in school mathematics, limit the possibilities of how textbooks can be used by the teacher and constrain transformation to a significant degree.

To study a text, learners often engage in active reading. Through active reading, learners build an analysis by annotating, outlining, summarizing, reorganizing and synthesizing information. These strategies serve a fundamental meta-cognitive function that allows content to leave strong memory traces and helps learners reflect, understand, and recall information. Textbooks, however, are becoming more complex as new technologies change how they are designed and delivered. Interactive, touch-screen tablets offer multi-touch interaction, annotation features, and multimedia content as a browse-able book. Yet, such tablet textbooks-in spite of their increasing availability in educational settings-have received little empirical scrutiny regarding how they support and engender active reading. To address this issue, this dissertation reports on a series of studies designed to further our understanding of active reading with tablet textbooks. An exploratory study first examined strategies learners enact when reading and annotating in the tablet environment. Findings indicate learners are often distracted by touch screen mechanics, struggle to effectively annotate information delivered in audiovisuals, and labor to cognitively make connections between annotations and the content/media source from which they originated. These results inspired SMART Note, a suite of novel multimedia annotation tools for tablet textbooks designed to support active reading by: minimizing interaction mechanics during active reading, providing robust annotation for multimedia, and improving built-in study tools. The system was iteratively developed through several rounds of usability and user experience evaluation. A comparative experiment found that SMART Note outperformed tablet annotation features on the market in terms of supporting learning experience, process, and outcomes. Together these studies served to extend the active reading framework for tablet textbooks to: (a) recognize the tension between active reading and mechanical interaction; (b) provide designs that facilitate cognitive connections between annotations and media formats; and (c) offer opportunities for personalization and meaningful reorganization of learning material.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has been organized for over one hundred and thirty-six years. The history of nearly a century of that time--1866 to the present--has not been adequately dealt with in any single book currently available for use on the high school level as an L. D. S. seminary text. The objective of this field project was to produce textual materials covering a fifty-three year portion of this period--the portion 1898-1951.Church history material relative to this period was gathered and organized in a biographical framework centering in the lives and administration of the four individuals who presided over the Church during that time--Lorenzo Snow, Joseph F. Smith, Heber J. Grant, and George Albert Smith.While this historical information was being gathered a study was conducted relative to four major aspects of readability--content, style, format, and organization. This initial study consisted of a review of available literature concerning readability, and a poll of student preference regarding textbook format. As a result of this study recommendations were made relative to most facets of text production.The textual material produced was submitted to a field test and refined in the following manner:(1) Initially it was evaluated by means of the Dale-Chall readability formula for the purpose of predicting the grade level at which it could be read and understood. The objective of this first step was to bring the comprehension level of the text to a late ninth grade level.(2) Secondly, the material was read and evaluated by over 430 students. These students appraised each section in the four proposed chapters, registering whether they felt the material was satisfactory, extremely interesting, or needed revision to make it acceptable to them.(3) Results of this poll were tabulated and the chapters revised. Each section which was recommended for revision by 16.7% or more of these students were rewritten according to recommendations made in the evaluation.(4) Lastly, the revised textual material was checked by means of both the Flesch reading ease formula and the Flesch human interest formulas. Each addition or revision was rewritten until it registered at a late ninth grade level or lower on the Flesch reading ease scale, and at a style level of "interesting" or higher on the Flesch human interest scale.A suggested list of types of illustration to accompany the text was included as a final step.

No description available.

published_or_final_version / Education / Master / Master of Education

Science and technology are constantly transforming our day-to-day living. Science education has become of vital importance to prepare learners for this everchanging world. Unfortunately, science education in South Africa is hampered by under-qualified and inexperienced teachers. Textbooks of good quality can assist teachers and learners and facilitate the development of science teachers. For this reason thorough assessment of textbooks is needed to inform the selection of good textbooks. An investigation revealed that the available textbook evaluation instruments are not suitable for the evaluation of the physical science textbooks in the South African context. An instrument is needed that focusses on science education textbooks and which prescribes the criteria, weights, evaluation procedure and rating scheme that can ensure justifiable, transparent, reliable and valid evaluation results. This study utilised elements from the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) to develop such an instrument and verified the reliability and validity of the instrument’s evaluation results. Development of the Instrument for the Evaluation of Science Education Textbooks started with the formulation of criteria. Characteristics that influence the quality of textbooks were identified from literature, existing evaluation instruments and stakeholders’ concerns. In accordance with the AHP, these characteristics or criteria were divided into categories or branches to give a hierarchical structure. Subject experts verified the content validity of the hierarchy. Expert science teachers compared the importance of different criteria. The data were used to derive weights for the different criteria with the Expert Choice computer application. A rubric was formulated to act as rating-scheme and score sheet. During the textbook evaluation process the ratings were transferred to a spreadsheet that computed the scores for the quality of a textbook as a whole as well as for the different categories. The instrument was tested on small scale, adjusted and then applied on a larger scale. The results of different analysts were compared to verify the reliability of the instrument. Triangulation with the opinions of teachers who have used the textbooks confirmed the validity of the evaluation results obtained with the instrument. Future investigations on the evaluation instrument can include the use of different rating scales and limiting of criteria. / Thesis (M. Ed. (Didactics))

Vad som inspirerade mig till att skriva denna studie var påve Franciskus besök i Lund och Malmö den 31 oktober 2016 i samband med det gemensamma luthersk-katolska uppmärksammandet av 500 års minnet av reformationen. Syftet med min studie är att undersöka hur reformationen och den katolska kyrkan skildras i sex stycken läroböcker i religionskunskap för gymnasiet och hur skildringarna förhåller sig objektivt i enlighet med skolans läroplan. För analysen av läroböckerna har jag använt mig av en kvalitativ textanalys. Mitt förväntade resultat var att skildringen av reformationen skulle ha en lutherskt präglad syn på konflikten och dess konsekvenser och att jag skulle finna objektivitetsbrister i skildringen av reformationen. Studiens resultat styrker min hypotes då Martin Luther och den lutherska reformationen utgjorde det övervägande utrymmet i alla läroböcker förutom en samt att den katolska reformationen endast skildras i en av de sex läroböckerna. Av de undersökta läroböckerna bedöms endast en som objektiv i förhållande till läroplanen. / What inspired me to write this study was the visit of Pope Franciscus in Lund and Malmö on October 31 2016 in connection with the common Lutheran Catholic attention of the 500th anniversary of the Reformation. The purpose of my study is to investigate how the Reformation and the Catholic Church are depicted in six textbooks in religious studies for upper secondary school and how the descriptions relate objectively according to the school curriculum. For the analysis of textbooks, I have used a qualitative text analysis. My expected result was that the depiction of the Reformation would have a Lutheran distinctive view of the conflict and its consequences and that I would find objectivity deficiencies in the depiction of the Reformation. The results of the study reinforce my expectation when Martin Luther and the Lutheran Reformation constituted the predominant space in all textbooks except one, and that the Catholic Reformation is only depicted in one of the six textbooks. Of the studied textbooks, only one is assessed as objective in relation to the school curriculum.

1 Abstract: The main parameters describing content and the accessibility of information from textbooks are many aspects such as text difficulty and others. Individual characteristics of pupils - that are represented by chosen student preconceptions and misconceptions - also belong to key factors. The providing of the comprehensive view of the issues regarding analysis and the linking of acquired pieces of knowledge with the practical textbook creation have been the main aims of this dissertation. The creation of an instructional text follows the analysis results of the topic carbohydrates and their metabolism in chosen textbooks and the preconception analysis of biochemical terms. The instructional text respects the results of the analysis. The theoretical background of textbook creation (the functions of textbooks, their structure, content, characteristics and investigated parameters) has been described in detail in the theoretical part of this doctoral thesis. It is followed by the survey of the information concerning student preconceptions and the possibilities for their analysis and use in teaching. The aspects of textbooks use from the perspective of pupils, teachers and publishers, as well as the relation of the topic carbohydrates and their metabolism to curriculum documents have been described in...