The purpose of this study was to investigate the beliefs and related classroom practices of a selected group of in-service teachers within the context of a mathematics professional development intervention for primary school teachers in the Eastern Cape of South Africa. A cohort of 34 teachers drawn from urban and rural schools in the Eastern Cape engaged in an accredited professional development intervention offered by the Rhodes University Mathematics Education Project (RUMEP). The 34 teachers were referred to as key teachers as they were expected to stimulate mathematics activities with fellow teachers in their school and in a cluster of nearby schools. The professional development intervention took place in a context of transition and transformation in education in South Africa. Curriculum transformation has been inspired by the production of a national policy document known as Curriculum 2005. This document rests on the theoretical assumptions of a learner-centred, outcomes-based approach within a constructivist framework. The professional development experiences of the RUMEP intervention were based on a strongly constructivist rationale recognising the need for key teachers to implement learner-centred, outcomes-based approaches in their classrooms. Although the study included both qualitative and quantitative data gathering techniques the research paradigm was mainly interpretive. From the group of 34 key teachers, a purposive sample of three cases was selected for classroom observation. Two observation periods of six months each made up the First Phase and Second Phase classroom visits, interspersed with intensive professional development contact sessions. / During the First Phase observations, 1 as the participant observer, visited the classrooms of Lulama, Makana and Ruth (pseudonyms), the three case study teachers. In the Second Phase period, a colleague and 1 video recorded the classroom practices of all three teachers. The videotapes were analysed by a consultant panel of observers to identify emergent themes using Yager's (1991) Constructivist Learning Model to guide the analysis process. The panel identified a number of dominant themes and these meta-themes have possible implications for a teaching and learning approach that is based on learner-centred, constructivist strategies as advocated in the Curriculum 2005 document. The meta-themes included such challenging issues as a constructivist learning environment, learner-centredness, learner participation, collaboration, reflection, teacher content knowledge, topic progression, and power relations. The findings of the study also suggested that the case study teachers' beliefs did influence their classroom practices. A significant outcome was that teachers in the field were unlikely to sustain outcomes- based, constructivist approaches without regular on-site support. Arising out of this study, 1 was able to isolate ten features that should usefully be incorporated into other professional development interventions in the Eastern Cape, and one of these features was the support provided to teachers in the classroom. / Of further significance was the realisation that future interventions need to focus on the conceptual development of teachers' mathematics content knowledge and the systematic planning of related activities when preparing the pace and a particular mathematics topic using the National Curriculum Statement (2001) as a guide. Quantitative data from the full cohort of 34 key teachers was collected via a mathematics Beliefs Scale, authentic assessment tests (Insight Tasks), and a School Level Environment Questionnaire (SLEQ). The results on the Belief Scale indicated significant differences teachers' beliefs on two out of the' c subscales. These differences were in the teaching and learning of mathematics. There was no significant difference on the sequencing topic subscale. The key teachers completed the Insight Tasks pre an intervention to measure gains in their content and pedagogic (professional) knowledge. The Insight Task results indicated that the key teachers made clear progress in their professional development. Quantitative data was also gathered from six mathematics teachers in a selected urban school. The School Level Environment Questionnaire instrument was administered to the six teachers. The aim was to profile the teachers' pedagogic needs within a context of curriculum transformation. The profile raised two items for discussion: Staff Freedom and Resource Adequacy. It would appear that the teachers in this particular school wanted more guidance in planning outcomes-based mathematics topics, and they highlighted the need for classroom- based resources if they were to adequately implement such a curriculum.

Reconciliation of human plurality, with the commonality requisite for egalitarian political order, is arguably the central question confronting political thought today. The thesis is a response to Hannah Arendt’s insight that in the wake of the twentieth-century demise of metaphysical ultimates, we must affirm human capacity for autonomous judgment as fundamental to sustaining a world ‘fit for human habitation’. It consists of a theory of autonomy (or practical reason) designed to fully address pluralism, historicism and the critique of identity/difference. In the light of Onora O’Neill’s constructivist reading of Kantian reason, autonomy as ‘creative action’ is defended as the minimal human commonality which must be presupposed, to account for trans-cultural justice grounded in communication rather than coercion. The account of autonomy employs Kant’s notion of the ‘unconditioned’: freedom from determinate causes; that which is common to all by virtue of being particular to none. Kant’s merely formal concept is reconceived as a substantive experience within the world: the momentary suspension of existing cultural forms, identified as both a formal and substantive prerequisite to overcoming prejudices, and the achievement of trans-cultural communication. Building on Hans-George Gadamer’s tradition-dependent notion of hermeneutic judgment, creative action consists of first ‘receptive attention’, the suspension of existing understandings, pre-conceptions etc., and open receptivity to what is there, and second, ‘responsive judgment’, revitalisation of authoritative standards internal to a ‘vital sphere of practice’ – a realm of human activity whose authoritative standards are constituted through creative action. Creative action is defended as a minimal, generic prerequisite for the realisation of any transcendent value (such as truth, justice and beauty) within a vital sphere of practice. This ideal of autonomy coheres with a pluralist ideal of society as a web of equal, autonomous yet interdependent vital spheres of practice. A distinctive feature of the thesis is that it provides, in addition to a maximally-capacious account of autonomy, a radically pluralist ontological and epistemic framework. Contemporary political thought embracing human plurality and difference has for the most part been wary of metaphysical ultimates, opting for epistemic abstinence and avoiding explicit metaphysical commitments. I argue, however, that a substantive, philosophical account of the possibility of trans-cultural justice requires admission of that which transcends the culturally-conditioned, as well as adherence to some notion of philosophical truth. As western thought has inherited from Platonism and the Judeo-Christian tradition a view of truth as monological, universal and unchanging, radical, pluralist revisions are required. Within the proposed two-tiered epistemology, creative action takes the place of reason. This epistemic framework retains the transcendent content of truth, while fully acknowledging the cultural-relativity of particular socio-cultural forms. It allows the theory to stand as a substantive, philosophically-vindicated theory of autonomy, but without rendering it vulnerable to post-structuralist charges of cultural-imperialism. The thesis shows that the universalist, egalitarian commitments of the Kantian tradition can be reconciled with strong commitment to difference and diversity, but only if the philosophical and political realms abdicate their traditional positions of privilege vis a vis other spheres of practice.

Background: Using technology requires nurses to capture, retrieve and organize digital data within virtual environments. Nurses often integrate digital data with other data sources when providing patient care with telehealth technologies and conducting research. Little is understood of how nurses navigate technology and process digital data in professional practice. Purpose: The overall aim of this dissertation was to explore how nurses navigate virtual environments and integrate digital data in professional practice through a grounded theory study of how nurses know the person using telehealth technology. The goals of the dissertation were to: a) Describe how knowing the person occurs with use of telehealth technology; b) Create a theoretical conceptualization of how the nurse comes to know the person in a virtual environment; and, c) Explicate data collection and analytical processes in Charmaz’s constructivist grounded theory. Methods Charmaz’s constructivist grounded theory (ConGT) was used for the research study. Findings: The process of conducting this study yielded two outcomes: 1. A grounded theory and conceptualization for Getting a Picture, which illuminates an integrated and iterative interplay of seven processes and 21 sub-processes that nurses described when forming a mental image of the person being cared for. Twenty-two registered nurses from five telehealth programs in two different provincial health systems participated. Primary data sources included 22 first interviews and 11 second interviews with the participants, and five observational experiences. 2. The approach for conducting ConGT involved operationalizing a series of five steps in the analytic process to visualize and conceptualize Getting a Picture. These steps included Initial Data Collection, Initial Coding, Focused Coding, Theoretical Coding and Theory Building. Conclusion: Visualization played an instrumental role when technology was used for both knowing the person in a virtual environment and operationalizing the methodological processes for this ConGT research study. Three main themes related to this overall finding in this dissertation were: (a) visualization and conceptualization to create a mental image is evident in both clinical and research domains of nursing practice; (b) interoperability of technology can impact visualization; and (c) competencies are required to support mental imaging and use of technology in visualizing a whole and accurate picture.

Early childhood environments can offer valuable opportunities for student collaboration. Social interactions allow students to practice listening to each other and learn how to work together. This study focused on the roles and perspectives of early childhood educators related to student collaboration in the classroom. Six educators from one elementary school in New Hampshire participated in two focus group discussions, the first of which included a presentation on student collaboration with first graders. Participants also completed four concept maps highlighting their perspectives about student collaboration and one written reflection comparing their perspectives before and after engaging in the focus group discussions. Participants’ awareness of strategies for student collaboration grew through these discussions among peers. Implications of the study include providing opportunities for educators to engage in discussions that examine their approaches for planning, preparing, and offering a variety of collaborative activities throughout the day.

Cyberbullying, the use of personal and information and communication technologies to harass or intimidate others, is an increasingly pervasive problem in schools. This mixed- methods study explored the effectiveness of a multimedia WebQuest in teaching 156 middle-school students about the dangers of cyberbullying and examined the role of gender in learning about cyber-harassment. Set within a constructivist framework, the study provides an innovative, technological intervention for cyberbullying education for use with adolescents and is instrumental in reshaping public policy surrounding cyberbullying education and prevention. The dissertation study occurred in two phases. Phase I, WebQuest Construction, was qualitative in nature and employed stakeholder focus groups to assess middle-school students’ knowledge and awareness surrounding cyberbullying. Data from the focus groups informed the construction of the WebQuest. The second phase, Data Collection from Students, was quantitative in nature and was composed of a pre-test, WebQuest treatment, and post-test. Data analyses for Phase II included paired-sample t tests, repeated-measures analyses of variance, and descriptive statistics that focused on three dependent variables, namely awareness, safety, and knowledge. Findings indicated statistically significant increases in awareness and knowledge from the pre-test to post-test among the middle-school aged participants, while the slight increase in safety from pre to post-test was not significant. The findings support the need for school communities to begin engaging in conversation surrounding the best ways to teach students about cyberbullying’s dangers through the use of technology and issue a call for a re-examination of constructivist learning theory.

The main purpose of this classroom action research was to improve student learning in a Health Science class in Thailand by using the Constructivist Learning Environment Survey (CLES) and a constructivist learning approach. This study combined quantitative and qualitative data and was conducted over one semester in four stages: 1) assessing the students' perceptions of their constructivist learning environment and determining students' pre-instruction conceptions about AIDS; 2) constructing an intervention based on constructivism theory in order to improving learning environments and students' learning outcomes; 3) implementing the intervention; and 4) evaluating the success of the intervention by re-assessing with the CLES. The Attitude Towards AIDS Questionnaire (ATAQ) was used to assess students' attitudes about AIDS. The students' cognitive achievement was assessed with the Students' Knowledge of AIDS Test (SKAT). Qualitative data were obtained from informal observation, focus group discussions, and student journals. The results indicated that the adapted Thai version of the CLES is appropriate for use in Health Science classes in Thailand's socio-cultural context because it was shown to be valid and reliable in both Actual and Preferred Forms. The results also revealed that the CLES and a constructivist learning approach can be used as effective tools in order to improve the learning environment of a Health Science class. This approach can improve students' knowledge and students' attitudes toward AIDS. The qualitative results supported the results from the questionnaires. This study suggests that teachers and health educators in Thailand can use the CLES to improve their learning environment and use a constructivist learning model to bring about improvement in students' achievement in their classes.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the extent to which Constructivist Learning Environment (CLE) aspects exist in primary level 4th and 5th grade Science and Technology Courses in Turkey as perceived by students and their teachers. Secondly, the study aimed at finding out whether perceptions of students on CLE differ according to certain demographic variables. Finally, the study attempted to explore the extent to which the perceptions of teachers on administrative support have a relationship with their perceptions on CLE. Subjects of the study involved 1143 primary level 4th and 5th grade students in Turkey during 2006-2007 school year from 6 socio-economic development groups as determined by State Planning Department and their 264 teachers. Data were collected in 2006-2007 Spring semester through administration of two questionnaires to the students and the teachers. Data analysis was carried out through both quantitative (repeated measures ANOVA, frequencies, means, standard deviations, MANOVA) and qualitative analysis techniques. The results of the study indicated that students and teachers perceived the current learning environment to be often constructivist. In addition, the results revealed that perception of CLE differed according to socio economic status and technology use of students. Lastly, the results revealed that there is a significant but low correlation between teachers&rsquo / perceptions on CLE and their perceptions on administrative support they received. The results revealed that students should be provided with more facilities and teachers be provided with more in-service training opportunities.

The present doctoral thesis aimed to explore what it means to be a first-level manages in a Swedish municipal social care administration, seen from the managers’ perspective. The empirical data derives from a participative, constructivist project which intended to contribute to new practice-based knowledge and to the learning and development of the participating managers. The participating managers reflected over their work and their managerial role by the use of a combination of repertory grid interviews, personal diaries and group discussions. Qualitative descriptive phenomenological analyses of the extensive material painted a vivid and nuanced picture of their work situation and professional role. In Paper I the project and the used methods were described in detail. Short extracts of data illustrated the potential of the general approach of combining constructivist techniques in participative and action oriented projects. The first brief results illustrated by “A day in a team manager’s working life” and by three “leadership dilemmas”: The spider in the web; The border patrol; and The open door, presented a picture of the managers’ complex work situation and how they were stimulated to address the problems arising. Paper II showed the many facets of social care management, where six “faces” portrayed the complex managerial role. The results indicated that managers in this and other welfare organizations need to construe and re-construe their managerial role in order to balance the contrasting demands on their role, thereby ac-complishing a personal equilibrium. Paper III further explored the managers' leadership role ideal, grounded in the concept of care. Several aspects of the managers' work situation resulted, on their own or in conjunction, in difficul-ties fulfilling their caring leadership ideal. These difficulties of which the managers spoke were arranged into three distinct patterns: problems, dilemmas and paradoxes. The results gave insight of the nature of these difficulties, the implications which these might have on the managers, their staff and the delivery of service, and the discussed remedies. Taken together the results raises new questions about municipal managers’ abilities and possibilities to handle ideals and requirements which are difficult to consoli-date particularly in times or resource scarcity. Is it possible to be an at the same time caring and efficient manager? How can mangers’ options to handle the complexity of modern welfare organisations be strengthened?

In this dissertation, the author argues that there is strong evidence that the child welfare workforce continues to be in crisis. While a great deal of research has indicated that supervision is closely linked to the crisis, extremely high rates of turnover have not been notably reduced through the efforts of administrators or academics to change supervisory practices. Therefore, the author makes the case that it is time to employ an alternative methodology—constructivist inquiry. Constructivist inquiry is based on paradigmatic assumptions that make it distinct from the functionalist approach that researchers most commonly use to understand the child welfare workforce crisis and the role of supervision. Consequently, the organization and content of this dissertation follow the conventions of a constructivist process. In order to take advantage of the unique role and opportunity created by the philosophical assumptions of subjectivity, interactivity, and reflexivity, the author incorporates an extensive discussion of her own tacit knowledge and practice wisdom along with the literature review. She then goes on to describe the phased, emergent, and participatory process used to examine the question: How do stakeholders in the local child welfare system value their experience of supervision? Finally, the author uses the data to tell the story in case report form and in a report of her own lessons learned. Through examination of the case report and lessons learned, the author intends for the reader to gain a more complex understanding of child welfare supervision and to evaluate for themselves how this understanding might be of value to their own role in the child welfare system.

Legal aid programs comprise a robust national infrastructure attempting to alleviate and reduce poverty. Since their proliferation as part of the War on Poverty, these organizations have provided individual civil legal assistance and engaged in collective legal and political strategies to advance systemic change. Starting in the 1980s, however, public policies have been enacted to cut funding and restrict the ability of federally funded legal aid programs to engage in collective and systemic advocacy. As a result, the ability of programs to work alongside low-income communities has been compromised. The histories and core commitments of legal aid and social work are linked. As a profession social work is concerned broadly with efforts to address poverty and specifically with the self-determination and empowerment of those experiencing poverty directly. In this study a constructivist grounded theory design was used to examine the process of collaboration between legal aid attorneys and client community members. The sample for the study included 28 attorneys, client community members, and other stakeholders affiliated with three legal aid programs. Based on 28 interviews and two focus groups with these participants, a conceptual framework entitled Collaborating for Justice in a Legal Aid Context was constructed. Findings suggest that both primary stakeholder groups were motivated to act by the unequal access to advantage in the world around them. Once affiliated with legal aid, they were constrained by scarcity of resources but nonetheless acted creatively to collaborate as well as to enhance collaborative capacity. Collaboration occurred in different timeframes, and this temporal element suggested ways that individuals and organizations can extend and deepen collaboration. Collective activities, informal interaction, and boards and advisory groups all played roles in facilitating collaboration between legal aid programs and their client communities. Through these actions, participants and their affiliated organizations were able to move from circumstances of scarcity to circumstances of generativity and development. Implications for education, practice, and policy are discussed.