D.Ed. / Teachers do not easily identify or use the thinking skills (support skills) present in themselves in their planning activities. The learners equally when they move from the Foundation phase to the Intermediate phase [from grade 3 to grade 4] do not reflect such support skills. Learners are thus unable to work quickly enough to acquire the new skills that are required in the next stage of their education. The problem of learning another language often encountered by learners when they come to formal school exacerbates the already challenging circumstances reflected in a country impacted by poverty. They have already acquired thinking skills in the process of learning their primary or home language. They often begin to learn this additional language during the foundation phase, and then in the intermediate phase they have to use the new language for the acquisition of knowledge and learning. In the schools in this study both the teachers and learners usually have to use the additional language as the language of learning and teaching (lolt). The main thrust of learning and teaching takes place in the intermediate phase where new subjects and learning areas are introduced and grounded. The research objectives of this study are to develop, implement and develop guideline for the evaluation of an educational programme that will assist Grade 4 teachers identify the schema or support skills that they use in planning for teaching and specifically language teaching. To enable the PDF created with pdfFactory Pro trial version www.pdffactory.com v teachers to act upon this information [data] in such a way that it will assist their learners with their learning needs during the first stage of the Intermediate Phase (grade 4) of their schooling, to promote faster learning. A long-term aspect of this intervention would be accelerated or assisted learning that will better equip the learner to more successfully move through all the phases of their education and eventually for life. The teachers would, as a result of the success of the programme, be further encouraged and motivated in their work. Further goals that arise out of the overall objectives of the study § Exploration and description of grade 4 teacher’s experience of scaffolding they use when planning their programmes with their learners. § Description of an approach to support the Grade 4 teacher and the teacher educator. § Description of guidelines to operationalise the support approach by the curriculum specialist. Qualitative strategies such as focus group interviews and naïve essays were engaged in and this resulted in the discovery that planning did not play an important part in the lives of the participant teachers nor for that matter were they using cognitive structures that led to planning. The lack of reflection on PDF created with pdfFactory Pro trial version www.pdffactory.com vi the meta-cognitive structures in their own lives led to the learners being undirected and thus impeding their learning. With this in mind a conceptual framework was developed out of which a programme was subsequently developed that looked at ways in which the problems experienced by teachers in using their cognitive support skills or scaffolding for planning could be obviated. A programme that assists teachers identify their own support skills and to use them appropriately, so the learners are enabled to learn faster was then developed. Once the programme had been developed, guidelines for its implementation and evaluation were then designed so that the programme could be assessed as to its effectiveness.

Zugl.: Frankfurt (Main), Univ., Diss., 2009

This study examined the moderating effects of teachers' implementation of a research-based comprehension intervention on a related student outcome. In addition to looking at the utility of including implementation data in a model of student outcomes, the stability of implementation ratings across occasions and the relationship between two implementation data sources (teacher logs and researcher ratings) were examined. The program featured in the study consisted of research-based comprehension strategy instruction implemented in 4th grade classrooms during social studies. Two measures of implementation -- fidelity and overall instructional quality -- did not predict student outcomes. In the tested model, a student's comprehension skills upon entering 4th grade did more to predict post-intervention comprehension achievement than did the teacher's instructional practices. Secondary analyses showed that an overall measure of teacher quality appears to be relatively reliable across only a few measurement occasions. Fidelity scores were less stable across occasions. The alternative method of collecting implementation data used in this study (audio recordings) appears to offer a viable and less costly means of obtaining implementation data. In addition, when measured at a macro level, implementation fidelity data from two sources (teacher logs and researcher ratings) were moderately correlated. Results inform future theory-driven evaluation activities by providing information on approaching the task of documenting implementation and using that information to understand program outcomes.

Ludwigsburg, Pädag. Hochsch., Diss. 2007.

Zugl.: Aachen, Techn. Hochsch., Diss., 2007

Zugl.: Oldenburg, Universiẗat, Diss.

M.Ed. / In this study it is shown that two dynamic forces exist in the day to day practice of teaching and learning: (a) The instructional effect of teaching and learning The first dynamic force is the instructional effect of teaching and learning. It is expressed as an action where the teacher conveys to the learner crystallized knowledge, norms and techniques which for centuries have developed in a particular society. (b) The nurturant effect of teaching and learning The second dynamic force originates in the learner and his budding potential. It is expressed as the will of the learner to learn through his own effort and ability. This implies that the learner will need opportunities to discover SUbject-matter for himself and will require sufficient room for own initiative without too much control from the teacher. The dilemma the teacher now finds himself in is how to instruct knowledge in a meaningful way without dampening the joy and flow of individual discovery, inspiration and creativity. Should he guide the learner towards a clearly formulated educational goal or should the learner discover meaning for himself without much interference from the teacher? In the study it was shown that a lack of balance between these two forces will result in verbalism, a superficial type of knowledge where pupils have memorized knowledge without comprehension.

Dissertation submitted in compliance with the requirements for the Master's Degree in Technology: Food and Beverage Management at the Durban Institute of Technology, 2003. / Historically, any large hotel of standing/rating in South Africa would staff the top levels of their kitchen brigade with educated, professional cooks imported from all over the world from such places as Germany, Switzerland, England or France, to name but a few / M

Vygotsky (1978, as cited in Day, Engelhardt, Maxwell and Bolig, 1997) argued that a complete profile of intellectual competence must include both static measures of what the child already knows and dynamic measures of the child's ability to benefit from instruction. This study involves an analysis of this contention and has two specific aims: Firstly, to determine whether modified cognition would result from mediation, using three instruments of Feuerstein's Learning Potential Assessment Device in a group administration format, as demonstrated by improved performance in post-mediation testing; and secondly , to determine whether the group administration of the three instruments from the Feuerstein's Learning Potential Assessment Device will be able to detect differences in the degree of coqnltive modifiability of individuals. The statio assessment paradigm is predominant within the South African education system and is used to categorise and place learners in "appropriate" learning contexts ego special schools, special classes within mainstream and mixed ability groupings. The growing discontent with standardised tests rests mainly with the fact that they only access the manifest level of performance of learners. As such,it is contended that they do a gross injustice to those learners that are educationally-disadvantaged, marginalised and culturally different to the norm groups of the standardised assessments. The dynamic assessment paradigm is presented as an alternative to static assessment because it focuses on learning potential. It regards a learner's manifest level of performance as -a baseline and emphasises the need to mediate within what Vygotsky (1978) calls the learner's zone of proximal development to access his/her potential. The Learning Potential Assessment Device, consisting of a battery of dynamic assessment instruments, was used in the study to ascertain the effects of mediation on performance and to detect differences in the degree of coqnitive modifiability of individuals. This was done using a pretest - mediation - post-test procedure with a comparison of pretest and post-test performances. Through the process of random assignment, the population sample of thirty one grade eight subjects was divided into a control group and an experimental group. The pretest phase of three selected instruments (Numerical Progressions, the Organizer and the Organization of Dots) was administered to the group as a whole. The mediation phase was administered to the experimental group only and thereafter both the control group and the experimental group completed the post-test phase. An analysis of the results revealed that the difference in pretest and post-test mean scores for Numerical Progressions was statistically not significant. An analysis of the mean scotes of the experimental group for the Organizer revealed that the educationally-disadvantaged group benefitted from mediation to a larger extent than the educationally-advantaged group. The pretest and post-test difference in mean scores for the Organization of Dots was statistically significant. An analysis of the post-test scores of individual subjects within the experimental group revealed a significant improvement for some learners, a marginal improvement for others and reduced scores for some in comparison to their pretest scores. A number of postulations are given for the varied effectiveness of the mediation that was provided. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2000.

A valid, reliable survey instrument was created to be used by public relations student-run firms and other applied public relations courses to gauge client satisfaction. A series of focus groups and pilot tests were conducted to ascertain themes, refine questions, and then to refine the entire instrument. Six constructs to be measured, including strategies used by the students, project management, communication tools, professional demeanor, communication skills, and overall effectiveness, emerged as themes needing to be assessed. The final instrument included 40 scale questions, six follow-up questions (one for each set of scale questions), and four open-ended questions. As an outputs evaluation within General Systems Theory, this evaluative tool provides a feedback loop that did not exist prior for public relations applied courses and student-run firms. This survey, when used by public relations educators, will provide a standardized tool from which discussions can ensue and pedagogy may advance. / Department of Educational Studies