abstract: This action research study primarily examined how educative curriculum materials (i.e., curriculum materials that include supports for teacher learning) can improve a teacher’s knowledge base and ability to succeed in the classroom. The focus was on the impact of one type of educative curriculum material: PowerPoint presentations. Specifically, the study investigated if translating teacher’s manuals into digital presentations was valued by general education teachers responsible for teaching Engage NY math in kindergarten, first, second, and third grades. The study asked teacher participants to describe the impact (if any) of adding a digital presentation component to their lessons and investigated if they self-reported increased Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK), which is a teacher’s understanding of how to help students understand specific subject matter. Using questionnaires, interviews, and field notes, the following research questions were examined: 1) How do teachers describe the impact that pre-made digital slide share presentations (i.e., PowerPoint presentations) have on lesson planning, preparation, and pacing and 2) What impact does translating teacher’s manuals into digital slide share presentations (i.e., PowerPoint presentations) have on teacher’s pedagogical content knowledge? Results indicate that teacher participants found the presentations to be helpful and positively impacted their lesson planning, preparation, and pacing, and improved their perception of their own abilities when presenting Engage NY math content. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Leadership and Innovation 2019

Research indicates that a proportion of elementary teachers are not comfortable teaching science to young children. These teachers are unaware of the best methods of approaching science and don't have the science background knowledge to support teaching through inquiry methods. This case study explores the role educative curriculum materials play in supporting pre-service early childhood education teachers' knowledge with science content and teaching practices. Specifically, I examine how educative materials impact pre-service teacher's content knowledge in science and their pedagogical content knowledge related to inquiry methods. Three pre-service early childhood teachers participated in this research. The teachers were initially interviewed about teaching science based upon three instruments: Views of Science Inquiry, Views of the Nature of Science and the Science Teachers Efficacy Beliefs Inventory. Each subject was observed teaching science in their internship site: the first lessons taught were guided or approved by their teachers and the next lessons were conducted using the support of educative curriculum materials. Finally, the initial instruments were once again administered along with an interview to obtain changes in teacher's knowledge, beliefs and understandings of science and science teaching. Results from this research indicate that educative curriculum was supportive of teachers in a variety of ways. Most importantly, this curriculum helped teachers to target more aspects of scientific inquiry during their science lessons than lessons without the use of educative curriculum. The important considerations regarding the effectiveness of the educative curriculum for these pre-service teachers were their underlying beliefs about how science should be taught, their uses of the curriculum materials and reflective practices regarding their own teaching. Results specifically related to early childhood educators include the level of inquiry implemented with young children and how children communicate their findings. Young children need support in their participation of inquiry learning. Successful implementation of guided inquiry practices occurred in this research. Also, the teachers in this research found insightful ways that directly supported young children in their communication of ideas. Implications for further research are also discussed. Educative materials could further support pre-service early childhood teachers if additional supports were used including accessible curricular rationales, support in classroom management and the specific use of guided inquiry.

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No. of bitstreams: 1 Tese de Doutorado- PAULO DINIZ ficha catalog.pdf: 1109806 bytes, checksum: 74268f1e3629be50c94dd76cca1eee6a (MD5) / CAPES / Esta pesquisa teve como propósito identificar e compreender as mensagens da dimensão interacional da prática pedagógica representada em materiais curriculares educativos, identificar e compreender processos de recontextualização desses materiais, mobilizados por professores de Matemática participantes de um programa de formação continuada, bem como identificar e compreender as identidades pedagógicas comunicadas por esses professores, em decorrência do seu contato com materiais curriculares educativos. Para a coleta de dados foram utilizados procedimentos como entrevistas, análise documental e observação de aulas. Conceitos como enquadramento e classificação, da teoria de Basil Bernstein, foram utilizados na análise de dados que aponta para a existência de certa variabilidade do enquadramento relativo às categorias analisadas no âmbito das mensagens da prática pedagógica patentes nos materiais curriculares educativos. Ou seja, enquanto as regras de compassamento na implementação dos conteúdos e as regras de conduta dos sujeitos envolvidos na prática pedagógica foram mais controladas pelo professor, o controle sobre o sequenciamento e sobre a seleção de estratégias de resolução de tarefas foi compartilhado por professor e alunos. O processo compartilhado das regras de compassamento e de conduta sugere que os materiais curriculares analisados comportam uma modalidade de prática pedagógica que considera o estudante como um sujeito ativo no processo de aprendizagem. A pesquisa também evidenciou que os professores implementaram uma prática pedagógica que se traduziu na recontextualização de alguns dos princípios subjacentes ao material curricular educativo que utilizaram em sala de aula. Esse processo de recontextualização foi, simultaneamente, consequência da interlocução de princípios pedagógicos emanados no campo de recontextualização em que estão localizados os delineadores dos materiais curriculares educativos e do programa de formação continuada, do qual os professores participaram, assim como da identificação dos professores recontextualizadores com princípios pedagógicos rotineiros que já vinham guiando o seu trabalho docente. Essa interlocução dos referidos princípios, gera alguns conflitos de interesse que se evidenciam quando os professores aceitam alguns e negam outros. Além disso, a pesquisa permitiu a identificação de uma variedade de fatores influentes na construção e na variabilidade da identidade pedagógica do professor. Com base nesses fatores foi possível inferir sobre as dinâmicas identitárias, as quais se consideram relacionadas com a orientação profissional dos participantes do programa de formação continuada. Nesse sentido, três dinâmicas identitárias foram identificadas: desenvolvimento profissional, autoestima e cooperação, resultantes, em parte, do contato dos professores com materiais curriculares educativos. Fazendo um cruzamento dos resultados obtidos, conclui-se que os fatores que estão na origem dos conflitos de interesse evidentes nas posturas dos professores, de certa forma estão associados às suas dinâmicas identitárias. Além de realçar a importância da teoria de Bernstein em estudos sociológicos da sala de aula, realçar as potencialidades dos materiais curriculares educativos no fazer pedagógico dos professores, este trabalho também enaltece a importância de certos interlocutores na construção das identidades pedagógicas desses profissionais. Como exemplo disso, pode-se destacar que, no âmbito do programa de formação continuada, os professores participantes estabeleceram comunidades de referência que os apoiam no seu trabalho. / ABSTRACT This research aimed to identify and understand the messages of the interactional dimension of the pedagogical practice represented in educative curriculum materials, to identify and understand processes of recontextualization of these materials by mathematics teachers who participated in a continuous training program, as well as to identify and understand pedagogical identities communicated by these teachers, as a result of their contact with educative curriculum materials.Interviews, documentary analysis and observation of classes were used for tata collection. Concepts such as framing and classification, from Basil Bernstein's theory, were used in the data analysis that points to the existence of some variability of the framing relative to the analyzed categories regarding the messages of pedagogical practice existing in the educative curriculum materials. That is, while the compassing in the content implementation and the conduct rules of the subjects involved in the pedagogical practice were more controlled by the teacher, the control over the sequencing and the selection of strategies of task resolution was shared by teacher and students. The shared process of rules of the compassing and conduct suggests that the analyzed materials comprise a modality of pedagogical practice that considers the student as an active subject in the learning process. The research also showed that the teachers implemented a pedagogical practice that resulted in a recontextualization of some of the principles underlying the material they implemented, in terms of the contents of the task and the sequencing. Our analysis suggests that this recontextualization was simultaneously a consequence of the interlocution of pedagogical principles of different recontextualization fields (For example, the designers of the educative curriculum materials and the continuous training program) and the identification of the teachers with routine pedagogical principles that had already been guiding their teaching work. This interlocution of the mentioned principles generates some conflicts of interest that are evidenced when the teachers accept some of them and deny others. In addition, the research allowed the identification of a variety of factors influencing the construction and variability of the teacher's pedagogical identity. Based on these factors it was possible to infer about the identity dynamics, which are considered related to the professional orientation of the participants of the continuous program. In this sense, three identity dynamics were identified: professional development, self-esteem and cooperation, resulting, in part, from the teachers' contact with educative curriculum materials. Crossing the obtained results, we conclude that the factors that are the origin of the conflicts of interest evident in the postures of the teachers are associated to their identity dynamics. This research highlights the importance of Bernstein's theory in classroom sociological studies, highlights the potential of educative curriculum materials in the pedagogical practices as well as evidences the importance of certain interlocutors in the construction of the teacher’s pedagogical identities. As an example, it can be highlighted that, within the framework of the continuos training program the participating have established reference communities that support them in their work.