The extent to which participation in research is seen as an essential part of Initial Teacher Education programmes is very variable across time and institutions. Where it is a necessary part of the programme, student teachers are expected to engage in classroom enquiry and this is considered beneficial for them, the schools involved and to others more widely. This thesis explores student teacher research as knowledge creation, how the knowledge created by examples of the University of Sussex PGCE Special Study was used by the students, their school-based mentors and professional tutors and what effect this had on the culture of the schools. The research is presented through multiple embedded case studies derived from interviews with three participants in each of three schools: a student teacher researcher, their departmental mentor and the professional tutor. These are discussed through a micro-political lens by cross-section according to their collective role and holistically in relation to each school case. This analysis is further developed using a Bourdieusian analysis to support an understanding of how participants used the Special Studies to further their individual interests. The place of student research in the contested field of national initial teacher education policy is also discussed in order to highlight conflicted constructs of teacher professionalism. The ‘insider-outsider' binary is explored throughout the thesis and is reflected in its iterative methodology, types of knowledge, models of research, communities of practice and the researcher's own biography. Conflict and disruption are reviewed as offering creative potential and it is proposed that student teachers and their research are uniquely positioned to constitute a hybrid ‘semi-insider/outsider'. It is argued that by occupying this mid-space they can make a unique contribution to their school communities and the professional knowledge of teachers. However, the extent to which this takes place will depend on the potential that agents see for student research to further their own positional interests in a contested field. The thesis concludes that research projects can not only prepare student teachers for a research-active model of teacher professionalism, but also allow them to make an important contribution to partnership schools.

This research focused on achieving greater understanding of the teaching of speaking within modern foreign languages (MFL) and of Initial Teacher Education (ITE). It is a case study with elements of action research, including an intervention in my own practice and in two classrooms. However, the intervention was not the sole or primary or focus of the research. As a practitioner researcher, my aim was to generate knowledge which might improve practice in schools but could also be applied to my own practice. The thesis addresses the research questions: To what extent can focused Initial Teacher Education improve speaking skills in secondary Modern Foreign Language classrooms? How do MFL trainees and secondary school students experience the teaching of speaking skills? How do trainees plan for input and practice, including target language? To what extent is MFL subject-specific pedagogic knowledge valued and utilised in secondary schools? The research consisted of three elements: First a study of three cohorts' work in the ITE MFL course, including documents generated by the trainees supplemented by group interviews with the trainees. Second, a study of an intervention within the ITE MFL course, involving changes to its curriculum, pedagogy and assessment which were intended to raise the profile of speaking in trainees' preparation for classroom practice. Third, a study of a classroom intervention in which two trainees prepared and conducted a group talk activity with their Year 8 classes. The lessons and students' comments on speaking in MFL lessons were recorded and analysed. The over-arching theoretical framework of the thesis was pragmatism, drawing on the work of Biesta (2010) and Dewey (1936), and the analytical framework was based on Engeström's (2007) Activity Theory. The data were analysed thematically as part of Quantitative Content Analysis (Silverman, 2011). Students' language during the classroom intervention was analysed using Halliday's (1973) linguistic functions and Ellis' (2005) principles of instructed language learning were used as an evaluative framework for trainees' lesson plans. The literature review compares key elements of both the Key Stage Three Framework for MFL and the GCSE assessment framework for speaking in MFL with theories of second language acquisition. The data analysis suggests that subject-specific pedagogy is dominated by generic pedagogy in trainees' academic writing and in their feedback from school-based subject mentors. This is attributed, in part, to an over-emphasis on measurable outcomes in current objectives-based educational policies. The qualified success of the group talk intervention suggests that incorporating a task-based language teaching approach into school schemes of work would be beneficial, accommodating the meta-cognitive benefits of assessment for learning within an established model of language teaching. An analysis of the Initial Teacher Education partnership using Activity Theory indicates that structural constraints allow limited scope for innovation in the classroom practice of either teachers or trainees. Students expressed anxiety about making errors and appearing foolish to their peers. However, trainees also commented that teachers' anxieties about poor behaviour prevented them conducting pair work or small group work with some of their classes. In conclusion, using wider professional content knowledge could avoid an over-emphasis on short-term performance goals when complying with policy initiatives and external assessment frameworks concerning linguistic and professional knowledge. Trainees need to “fit in” with the culture of the host department by adopting its rules and tools but changes in the division of labour to allow increased collaborative work including trainees, mentors and tutors could support innovation. MFL pedagogy should provide sufficient input for the foreign language to be learned, thus enabling speaking in the target language, rather than using speaking as an aspect of performativity.

Following an action research framework, my research investigates professional development for English Language teachers in the Arab World, who are non-native speakers of English themselves. The thesis has five chapters: Literature Review, Critical Contexts, Methodology of the Study, Data Analysis and Presentation, and finally the Discussion and Findings of the research. The Literature Review covers works relevant to the area of the study in relation to existing teacher practices, teacher effectiveness and current professional development opportunities. The second chapter presents some critical contexts of the study; the researcher's personal and professional contexts, and the research sites. These provide accounts of the researcher's background as an English language teacher, trainer and researcher. This section clarifies the need for focused research in the area of professional development of English language teachers. The next section provides an overview of the United Arab Emirates, teaching population and study sample. After reviewing a range of educational research methodologies, the Methodology of the Study explains why Action Research was found to be the most appropriate framework for the project, and most particularly the Deakin participatory action research approach. Characteristics of the research population and study sample are then discussed. Thereafter, the data collection instruments (needs assessment questionnaires, interviews, observation checklists, discussions, feedback forms and documents) are discussed in relation to their role and purposes in the study. The chapter concludes by outlining the research phases, intervention strategy and the ethical dimensions of the study, particularly in relation to researcher identity and power relations. The Data Analysis and Presentation chapter focuses on summarising the data and identifying the general themes and clusters to be addressed by the interventions. The thesis concludes with the Discussion and Findings of the research. This final chapter covers the design and operation of the first and second interventions. It also aims to evaluate the effectiveness of the action research framework. This is followed by the research statement and discussion of the main findings, particularly how the findings of the research have affected the decision making policy in the professional development of teachers working for the UAE Ministry of Education. The findings of the research section also provides recommendations for policy and practice.

Thesis (M. Ed.) --University of the North, 1977 / Refer to the document

Made available in DSpace on 2014-06-11T19:24:36Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2007-03-08Bitstream added on 2014-06-13T19:06:15Z : No. of bitstreams: 1 mazzeu_ltb_me_arafcl.pdf: 938191 bytes, checksum: 2441808e7835f64432bc67a564b1fb43 (MD5) / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) / O presente trabalho consiste em uma análise crítica sobre as perspectivas oficiais de capacitação docente em meio às reformas político-educacionais na década de 1990. Toma como referência os materiais que compõem o Programa de Formação de Professores Alfabetizadores (PROFA), implementado pela Secretaria de Educação Fundamental do Ministério da Educação a partir do ano de 2001. Investiga os pressupostos teóricos e epistemológicos subjacentes aos programas de formação continuada de professores, à luz das contribuições da pedagogia histórico-crítica referentes à formação humana, ao trabalho educativo e à educação escolar. O desenvolvimento da argumentação se estrutura sobre as temáticas: das vinculações entre a reestruturação produtiva e as reformas político-educacionais da década de 1990; das relações entre as transformações no mundo do trabalho e as demandas para a educação; da profissionalização docente nos documentos oficiais; e, dos conteúdos dos processos de formação continuada de professores. As conclusões da investigação apontam que: a preocupação com a formação docente em meio às reformas educacionais desencadeadas na década de 1990 é estratégica do ponto de vista da implementação da reforma; as perspectivas oficiais de formação docente, pautadas pela epistemologia construtivista, pela pedagogia das competências e pela teoria do professor reflexivo, apontam, por um lado, para a descaracterização do trabalho educativo como atividade de ensino e, por outro, para a desqualificação da reflexão filosófica e para a secundarização do conhecimento científico, necessários à compreensão das vinculações da prática educativa no seio da prática social global. / This dissertation presents a critical analysis on the teachers training official perspectives, in the context of political-educational reforms in the 1990 decade. The research has as reference the material of PROFA - Programa de Formação de Professores Alfabetizadores (Literacy Teachers Formation Program), implemented by Secretaria de Educação Fundamental do Ministério da Educação (department of education for 7-14 year-old children of Education Ministry) from 2001 on. The program s theoretical and epistemological principles are analysed, from the point of view of historical-critical pedagogy conception of human development, educational work and scholar education. The argumentation development includes the following subjects: the links between productive reestruturation and political-educational reforms in the 1990 decade; the relationships between changes in the work organization models and the demands for education; the teacher's professional formation processes in the official documents; and the continuous formation program's contents. The conclusions of investigation point that: the concern with teacher's formation in the context of the educational reforms of 1990 decade plays a strategic role from the point of view of the implementation of the reform; the official perspectives of teacher's formations, based on the construtivist epistemology, the pedagogy of competences and reflexive teacher theory point, on the one hand, to the discharacterization of the educational work as teaching activity and, on the other hand, to the disqualification of the philosophical reflexion and to the secondarization of scientific knowledge, necessary to the comprehension of the educational practice in the context of global social practice.

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This study aimed to explore the development and experiences of teachers in the implementation of OBE in Mutale Educational District of Limpopo province. In order to achieve this goal, a thorough literature review was conducted and selected Teachers from schools located in the district, Education Specialists and Curriculum Advisors were also interviewed. Informed by the findings and literature, this study argues that school-based model of teacher development, where teachers are partners in their development, is the most suitable in the current curriculum transformation agenda in South Africa. It further alludes to the fact that teacher development would lead to effective curriculum implementation and by extension lead to effective learning in the schools. / Dr. M.C. Loggerenberg

On the African continent South Africa is unequivocally the economic and military giant. As the continental hegemon, the state has sought the reform of the unequal global economy in order to enhance the participation in the global political economy of all African countries. The South African government projects the discourse of African solidarity in driving global reforms, emphasising that such reforms will be of benefit to both the continent as a whole, and to the South African state. Within this context, it is the purpose of this dissertation to determine with greater clarity who stands to gain from South Africa’s efforts. In other words, is South Africa acting to acquire economic growth and development for Africa as a whole, or is the country primarily acting to secure its own wealth and power? In short, this study investigates whether South Africa – as the continental hegemon – is acting in a benevolent or selfish manner in its undertakings. The assessment of South Africa’s hegemony is presented in a theoretical schema constructed with a focus on the three main theories of international relations, namely liberalism, realism and structuralism. Each of these theories is employed descriptively as well as prescriptively as tools to evaluate the nature of the African political economy, and South African action versus rhetoric. Applying these conceptual lenses, South Africa’s position on three aspects of the African political economy are assessed and evaluated. These three areas of the political economy – trade, debt and foreign direct investment – serve as case studies revealing South Africa’s benevolence and/or selfishness. In brief, South Africa is pressing for the reform of the international financial architecture; rhetorically, the state seeks free trade and enhanced export opportunities for all African states; the country is urging foreign creditors to reduce Africa’s external debt; South African leaders have recommended that their counterparts establish an investor-friendly climate in Africa as a means to enhance foreign investments on the continent. South Africa’s actions have the potential to benefit the African continent as a whole, and simultaneously advance the state’s interests. The findings of this study point out that (a) each of the three theories can be utilised to describe South Africa’s rhetoric and actions, and (b) the essence of South Africa’s hegemony is neither entirely benevolent, nor exclusively selfish. / Mr. P.P Fourie

There is a growing body of research that suggests that participating in collaborative, long-term continuing professional development (CPD) is the most effective type of CPD for teachers. An example of such CPD is a teacher learning community (TLC) where a group of teachers work together in school to discuss pedagogy and practice, observe each other in the classroom and feedback, all of this is done with the intention of improving student outcomes. This case study follows 12 teachers and their experience of a TLC over one academic year at a secondary school in south east England. The focus of the case study was to find out how teachers learn in a TLC, how the TLC contributes to their professional learning, what are the outcomes of the TLC, the essential elements plus the strengths and limitations of the TLC and finally, what elements of a TLC and teacher learning from this project might be transferable to other schools. As an insider-researcher and member of the Senior Leadership Team, I collected qualitative data to uncover what goes on within the TLC and beyond it in order to understand how teachers learn in a TLC. The data sets consisted of ethnographic participant-observer notes, before and after interviews with five teacher participants, survey data and also interviews with teachers who had taken part in TLCs that had run in previous academic years. Key contributions to knowledge are that teachers learnt through key processes of discussion, experimentation, reflection, and observation; the combination of these dimensions for some teachers also led to the development of metacognitive skills. Furthermore, learning in a TLC and the development of these metacognitive skills take a significant amount of time to develop. A further contribution to knowledge is that TLCs also contribute to the emotional well-being of teachers providing support and encouragement which is much needed in a wider national and international culture of accountability and performance related pay. The main barriers to learning in the TLC were generally related to a lack of time to carry out observations and engage in the related processes. I conclude that TLCs have a positive impact on teachers and the school in a variety of ways, which leaves key decisions for Headteachers and policy makers: how can long-term collaborative CPD be supported and funded in schools and what cultural and financial shifts are required to enable all teachers to have the opportunities to participate in them.