In recent years, there has been increased interest and research on identifying the various ways that students can deviate from expected or desired patterns while using educational software. This includes research on gaming the system, player transformation, haphazard inquiry, and failure to use key features of the learning system. Detection of these sorts of behaviors has helped researchers to better understand these behaviors, thus allowing software designers to develop interventions that can remediate them and/or reduce their negative impacts on student learning. This work addresses two types of student disengagement: carelessness and a behavior we term WTF (“Without Thinking Fastidiously�) behavior. Carelessness is defined as not demonstrating a skill despite knowing it; we measured carelessness using a machine learned model. In WTF behavior, the student is interacting with the software, but their actions appear to have no relationship to the intended learning task. We discuss the detector development process, validate the detectors with human labels of the behavior, and discuss implications for understanding how and why students conduct inquiry without thinking fastidiously while learning in science inquiry microworlds. Following this work we explore the relationship between student learner characteristics and the aforementioned disengaged behaviors carelessness and WTF. Our goal was to develop a deeper understanding of which learner characteristics correlate to carelessness or WTF behavior. Our work examines three alternative methods for predicting carelessness and WTF behaviors from learner characteristics: simple correlations, k-means clustering, and decision tree rule learners.

In the Philippines, as in the US and UK and elsewhere, evangelical conversion is normally regarded as a ‘turning’ from a life ‘without Christ’ towards a life of ‘faith in Christ’. Traditionally, the potential convert is invited to ‘accept’ or ‘receive’ Christ as personal lord and saviour. Once a decision to ‘accept’ is indicated, the individual is considered ‘born again’ or ‘saved’, whereupon he or she is expected to manifest behavioural signs, such as participating actively in a ‘Bible-believing’ church, while adapting to its distinct ethos. This conversion, however, has not generally led to a commitment to issues of economic or social justice. In the years 1946-1986, Filipino evangelicals have tended to neglect the social question. This is consistently shown in their general silence during the 1972-81 martial law, the 1983 murder of Aquino and the 1986 people power revolution. Historically and theologically, this particularly conservative social disposition may have been influenced by a lopsided emphasis on aggressive evangelism and a general evasion of social questions, especially by US evangelical missionaries who carried the ‘baggage’ of the fundamentalist-modernist debate of the 1920s and 1930s. This theological orientation seems to have been perpetuated, one way or other, by their Filipino converts. That there are in the Philippines examples of previously socially-disengaged evangelical converts who eventually moved towards a socially-engaged path, however, seems to indicate the possibility of a theological re-orientation within this Christian tradition. This study tackles this particular ‘conversion’ or re-orientation within, not away from, the evangelical tradition, with the goal of shedding some light on the nature and possibility of a ‘second conversion’ towards a socially engaged posture. To explore this phenomenon of interest, the study identifies four different trajectories of change exemplified by particular theological pilgrimages travelled by Filipino evangelicals during their adult years. The first trajectory is about the development of a social conscience which benefited from an active involvement in an international evangelical student movement. The second represents a largely noncritical exposure made possible by a protracted career in medical missions that led to a similar awakening to social injustice. The third involves an evangelical who ended up accommodating Marxist social analysis. And the fourth concerns how an underprivileged evangelical managed to attain a second, more critical, perspective on poverty, leading to a commitment to combat economic injustice. These trajectories are explored through extensive interviews with each of the four subjects. Though necessarily limited in scope, the value of this study lies in its potential to gain some insights into factors that have the potential to ‘convert’ or ‘transform’ minds and ideological postures. It thus suggests that, at least in contexts of social and economic polarisation, the evangelical Protestant tradition may not be so inescapably tied to social and political conservatism as is often assumed. The study ends by drawing some wider conclusions about the possibility of a second conversion within the evangelical Protestant tradition.

In recent years, there has been increased interest and research on identifying the various ways that students can deviate from expected or desired patterns while using educational software. This includes research on gaming the system, player transformation, haphazard inquiry, and failure to use key features of the learning system. Detection of these sorts of behaviors has helped researchers to better understand these behaviors, thus allowing software designers to develop interventions that can remediate them and/or reduce their negative impacts on student learning. This work addresses two types of student disengagement: carelessness and a behavior we term WTF (“Without Thinking Fastidiously”) behavior. Carelessness is defined as not demonstrating a skill despite knowing it; we measured carelessness using a machine learned model. In WTF behavior, the student is interacting with the software, but their actions appear to have no relationship to the intended learning task. We discuss the detector development process, validate the detectors with human labels of the behavior, and discuss implications for understanding how and why students conduct inquiry without thinking fastidiously while learning in science inquiry microworlds. Following this work we explore the relationship between student learner characteristics and the aforementioned disengaged behaviors carelessness and WTF. Our goal was to develop a deeper understanding of which learner characteristics correlate to carelessness or WTF behavior. Our work examines three alternative methods for predicting carelessness and WTF behaviors from learner characteristics: simple correlations, k-means clustering, and decision tree rule learners.

There has been growing interest in academic literature about young people who are marginalised and disengaged from society. This thesis focuses on young people in Hong Kong and Scotland who physically shut themselves in the bedroom and do not go outside for months and years on end. They are referred to as “hidden youth” in East Asia, and it has emerged as a topical social issue across the region in the past ten years. Previous research studying “hidden youth” (mainly in Japan and Hong Kong) highlights that there are structural barriers in contemporary society which could lead to young people becoming self-secluded. The young people are described as living reclusive and solitary lives, as they are excluded from participation in the labour market and education and disengaged from interactions with families and other communities, especially friends and peer groups. Hence, they are considered as “withdrawn” from society and disconnected from socialising. This thesis critically reflects on “hidden” young people’s sense of connectedness and “being social” based on their lived experience. It also draws on recent debates of the construction of the “social”, particularly in digital sociology, to shed light on the processes of socialising in the digital age. This study uncovered that how “hidden” young people socialise may in fact be heterogeneous. Variability in how they engage in interactions and participation in society was identified. There were also differences in their levels of solitude and loneliness. Hence, describing how the young people are “being social” could be more nuanced than previously thought. This also makes analysing them as “socially withdrawn” particularly problematic. This research uses a qualitative exploratory approach, looking comparatively across two contexts; 32 interviews were conducted with “hidden youth” in Hong Kong and Scotland. These two contexts are considered as instrumental examples, where social disengagements are especially prominent but discussed differently. The participants revealed various perceptions of hopelessness and lack of opportunities in work and education on the hand. This significantly affected their motivations to participate in employment and education; they could feel unable to fulfil their aspirations and become de-motivated. On the other hand, they were more interconnected with different groups of people in the digital world, and their interactions could be fluid. The space of the bedroom was highlighted as an important site where interactions could occur. This adds another dimension to consider how “hidden” young people interact, particularly with communities such as peer groups, friends and families. Moreover, digital interactions may also be important to how they socialise and experience a sense of connectedness. This highlights that there may be tensions in how young people’s motivations, as well as the opportunities they have, affect their engagements in digital and physical interactions. Therefore, this thesis argues that “hidden youth” could feel a sense of powerlessness towards hierarchical macro structures and meaninglessness towards interactions and participation in society. Conversely, they are relying on emerging digital social structures and networks to seek other forms of “being social”. Their high levels of digital interactions could in fact be a reaction to their experiences of unfulfilment in the labour market and in education. This thesis makes an important contribution to understand “hidden youth” and adds a more nuanced perspective to this emerging debate. In addition, it points to further aspects that should be taken into account in future studies to fully comprehend the sociality of a young person and its complexities in the digital age.

Learning in school requires active engagement. Student engagement is an important aspect for all students, whether urban, suburban, or rural, and regardless of socioeconomic background. Students enter Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs for a multitude of reasons and CTE programs offer unique support for student success by increasing student engagement. This study will focus on CTE teachers' perceptions of the influence that CTE programs and industry credentialing have on student engagement. Utilizing information on student engagement will help educators develop strategies to promote student motivation and student engagement, thus leading to student academic success. This study is a quantitative, descriptive statistical study in which the researcher examined studies that focused on student engagement and student engagement predictors. The research identified six qualities of student engagement: positive conduct and absence of disruptive conduct, school attendance, academic progress, social membership, high expectations in students' ability to achieve, and emotional support. The researcher developed a survey to examine teachers' perceptions of CTE influence on student engagement by including the six qualities of student engagement as guidelines for questionnaire development. Results of the survey indicate that CTE teachers identify all six domains of student engagement as represented within their course structure. Responses of all groups were similar, while their levels of industry involvement different. Additional results of all teacher responses are provided in the paper. / Ed. D.

This study examined the impact of student choice on students who had not enjoyed their previous physical education experiences. The research question was: does student choice have an impact on the experiences of grade 10 students who have not enjoyed their previous physical education experiences?<p> Literature on lifelong physical activity, problems with Canadian health and society, engaging disengaged students, and student choice were all examined in the second chapter. Literature specific to physical education was also examined; this included discussions on programmatic challenges, student motivation, and student choice. The promotion of lifelong physical activity is the major goal of many physical education curricula. Researchers have shown that students who enjoy their physical education classes are more likely to be active later in life. Currently many students do not enjoy their physical education programs. Allowing students the opportunity to choose what sports and activities they will be involved in within their physical education class has been shown to have a positive impact on student motivation and enjoyment. Absent from the body of literature is an examination of the role that choice in physical education plays in increasing motivation and enjoyment for students who have not enjoyed their previous physical education experiences.<p> The study sought to learn about the experiences of students who have not enjoyed their previous physical education classes and what impacts they felt it may have on promoting lifelong physical activity adherence. Through purposeful sampling the study focused on the experiences of four students who were identified through a pre-study field investigation survey. Participants volunteered to take part in a one-on-one semi-structured interview with the researcher. The interviews provided a wealth of information on five themes. The themes that were most strongly represented in the interviews were: intrinsic motivation, self-determination, climate, engagement, and perceptions. The participants of the study were intrinsically motivated, felt a sense of self-determination, enjoyed the climate of their class, and were engaged in their learning. The participants also noted that their perceptions of physical activity had changed. Ultimately, the study showed that choice could have a profoundly positive impact on physical education experiences for students who have not previously enjoyed physical education.

This study examined the impact of student choice on students who had not enjoyed their previous physical education experiences. The research question was: does student choice have an impact on the experiences of grade 10 students who have not enjoyed their previous physical education experiences?<p> Literature on lifelong physical activity, problems with Canadian health and society, engaging disengaged students, and student choice were all examined in the second chapter. Literature specific to physical education was also examined; this included discussions on programmatic challenges, student motivation, and student choice. The promotion of lifelong physical activity is the major goal of many physical education curricula. Researchers have shown that students who enjoy their physical education classes are more likely to be active later in life. Currently many students do not enjoy their physical education programs. Allowing students the opportunity to choose what sports and activities they will be involved in within their physical education class has been shown to have a positive impact on student motivation and enjoyment. Absent from the body of literature is an examination of the role that choice in physical education plays in increasing motivation and enjoyment for students who have not enjoyed their previous physical education experiences.<p> The study sought to learn about the experiences of students who have not enjoyed their previous physical education classes and what impacts they felt it may have on promoting lifelong physical activity adherence. Through purposeful sampling the study focused on the experiences of four students who were identified through a pre-study field investigation survey. Participants volunteered to take part in a one-on-one semi-structured interview with the researcher. The interviews provided a wealth of information on five themes. The themes that were most strongly represented in the interviews were: intrinsic motivation, self-determination, climate, engagement, and perceptions. The participants of the study were intrinsically motivated, felt a sense of self-determination, enjoyed the climate of their class, and were engaged in their learning. The participants also noted that their perceptions of physical activity had changed. Ultimately, the study showed that choice could have a profoundly positive impact on physical education experiences for students who have not previously enjoyed physical education.

The research examines the discourses surrounding disengaged young people, particularly those under the age of 16, and the role of Scotland’s Colleges in making provision for them. Consideration is given to the voices of the young people themselves: how their college experiences compare to school and how they view themselves over this transition period. Consideration is also given to the policy in this area and how it has developed since the Beattie watershed of 1999. The debate surrounding the involvement of colleges in the provision of education for this group of young people touches on issues of social justice and the construction of children and young people, as well as throwing up questions about the roles and identity of Scotland’s schools and colleges. Among the questions it raises about colleges, it raises issues of pedagogy and of the professional status of its teaching staff and offers recommendations about the lessons each sector might learn from the other . Ultimately, it proposes that Scotland’s Colleges are uniquely placed to seek ascendancy in the post-school sector, welcoming and developing the role that they now play in the transition of young people to adulthood.

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Thesis (PhD)--Macquarie University, Australian Centre for Educational Studies, School of Education, 2008. / Bibliography: p. 159-177. / This thesis examines student identity construction and teacher identity construction in the context of secondary English Years 7-10 classrooms in a comprehensive high school in Western Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The research journey chronicles the teaching and learning experiences of a small group of students and teachers at Heartbreak High. The narrative provides insights into the factors responsible for creating teacher identity(s) and the identities of both engaged and disengaged students. -- Previous studies have tended to focus on the construction of disaffected student identities. In contrast, this case study tells the stories of both engaged and disengaged students and of their teachers utilising a unique framework that adapts and combines a range of theoretical perspectives. These include ethnography as a narrative journey (Atkinson, 1990), Fourth Generation Evaluation (Guba & Lincoln, 1990; Lincoln & Guba, 1989), reflexivity (Jordan & Yeomans, 1995), Grounded Theory (Strauss & Corbin, 1990; Sugrue, 1974) and multiple realities (Stake, 1984). -- The classical notion of the student-teacher dynamic is questioned in this inquiry. Students did not present powerless, passive, able-to-be motivated identities; they displayed significant agency in (re) creating 'self(s)' at Heartbreak High based largely on 'desires'. Engaged student identities reflected a teacher's culture and generally exhibited a "desire to know." In contrast, disaffected students exhibited a "desire for ignorance," rejecting the teacher's culture in order to fulfil their desire to belong to peer subculture(s). The capacity for critical reflection and empathy were also key factors in the process of their identity constructions. Disengaged students displayed limited capacity to empathise with, or to critically reflect about, those whom they perceived as "different". In contrast, engaged students exhibited a significant capacity to empathise with others and a desire to critically reflect on their own behaviour, abilities and learning. -- This ethnographic narrative offers an alternate lens with which to view pedagogy from the perspectives that currently dominate educational debate. The findings of this study support a multifaceted model of teacher identity construction that integrates the personal 'self(s)' and the professional 'self(s)' that are underpinned by 'desires'. Current tensions inherent in the composition of teacher identities are portrayed in this thesis and it reveals the teacher self(s) as possessing concepts that are desirous of being efficacious, autonomous and valued but are diminished by disempowerment and fear. / Mode of access: World Wide Web. / 266 p. ill