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The purpose of this study was to ascertain pre-service teachers' perceptions of the defining aspects of a mathematics methods course that aided in the development of a conceptual understanding of mathematics. These perceptions emerge from the narratives of four pre-service teachers in a mid-size metropolitan university in the southeastern part of the United States. Grounded in the theory of constructivism this study focuses on the educational experiences of pre-service teachers, as reported by pre-service teachers, creating a portrait of their journey. These pre-service teachers' learning experiences were based on national standards with a constructivist instructional approach and included field experience in a school environment. Analysis of the data revealed that pre-service teachers attributed their increase in conceptual understanding of mathematics to 'touching/doing activities' that required them to 'explain why'. Use of models and manipulatives aided in helping the pre-service teachers verify and justify their solutions to others, providing concrete items to use in explaining abstract concepts. Ultimately, requiring pre-service to explain their own thought processes, with and without manipulatives, aided them in developing a conceptual understanding of mathematics.

The purpose of this case study was to explore the perspectives and reflections of students and an educator who engaged in the assessment techniques of versioning and critique in a high school classroom employing Technology-Based Music Instruction (TBMI). The use of versioning (whereby students saved projects daily with a different file name), and critique was supported by and chosen based on a constructivist perspective of learning and assessment (Fosnot, 2005; Jonassen, 1992; Scott, 2012). I sought to document what students expressed about their experiences with versioning and critique in a TBMI classroom in relation to their learning process. I also explored the ways students constructed meaning and understanding through the process of reflection and discourse while using versioning and critique in a TBMI setting, as well as the ways their experiences with versioning and critique influenced their views of growth and self-expression. I presented one educator’s impressions regarding how the use of versioning and critique influenced his view of assessment in a TBMI setting. Study participants included a teacher and four students engaged in composition as part of an Introduction to Music Technology class at a private high school. Over a three-month period, I conducted three observations and two interviews with each study participant. Data included transcriptions of interviews, student journals, videos of the classroom, and fieldnotes. For data analysis, I employed an iterative coding process, which included a deductive and inductive application of codes. Data were then sorted thematically and summarized. Analysis revealed that the educator and students found both versioning and critique to be helpful and valuable in a number of ways. The students and teacher reported that versioning provided information about each student’s individual productivity level and unique compositional process. Students found that sharing their music and providing feedback with their peers through the critique process enabled them to interact with a community of musicians who had varying musical tastes and backgrounds. Future research could expand on this study by implementing daily student reflections and replicating aspects of this study in other classroom settings.

This dissertation is about the movement of people and the system of order underpinning the movement. In undertaking a comparative study of Canada and France between 1989 and 2005, the study explores a widespread phenomenon that security studies and migration scholars would have considered an anomaly only two decades ago: understanding the movement of people as an existential security threat. How is it that nation-states around the globe are cracking down on migration for security reasons? How do we know if migration has been securitized - and which criteria should we employed to guide our analysis? What are the social mechanisms at play in the interaction between movement and order? Does a variation in levels of securitized migration exist - and if so, what are the key determinants of the variation? These questions are at the heart of the present study. My argument is twofold. First, I contend that a constructivist perspective is useful in gaining a better understanding of the social mechanisms involved in the securitization of migration as it highlights discursive power, ideational factors, and cultural/contextual elements. Second, I argue that securitization theory - the current benchmark in securitization research - remains silent on the issue of variation in levels of securitized migration. As such, securitization theory, as currently applied and organized, cannot explain empirical findings of my study - a weak securitization in Canada versus a strong securitization in France. Underscoring the necessity to amend securitization theory, I investigate the impact of cultural factors - and especially the role of domestic audience - to account for the variation.

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Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Tennessee, Knoxville, 2002. / Title from title page screen (viewed Sept. 11, 2002). Thesis advisor: Edward L. Counts, Jr. Document formatted into pages (x, 186 p.). Vita. Includes bibliographical references (p. 88-100).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 2004. / Title from first page of PDF file. Document formatted into pages; contains xx, 275 p.; also includes graphics (some col.). Includes abstract and vita. Advisor: Terry Barret, Dept. of Art Education. Includes bibliographical references (p. 259-275).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Hong Kong, 2002. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 288-314).

Thesis (M. Ed.)--University of Hong Kong, 2002. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 84-93).

Learning space design can have a significant impact on student learning. When viewed through a lens of constructivist learning models, physical learning spaces can be designed intentionally to reflect an unprecedented level of student access to information and today’s students’ need to learn through the construction of knowledge through relationships both with other students and instructors. This paper seeks to explore the principles of constructivist learning theories and how they might impact physical learning space design. Further, it looks at instructor development within this context and how learning spaces may be used to have the greatest impact on college student learning. / text