1 Title Creation and implementation of project of invironmental upbringing in pre-school education Abstract This enclosed thesis look into making and realizating a project of enviromental studies in preprimary education which main target is to improve relationship between children and animals based on gained information about animals, direct observing of animals and actual spending time and doing tasks with living animals. The theoretical part of this work is the general definition of the project - its characteristics, features of educational project, production methods and procedures for project evaluation, as well as characteristics of preschool children with emphasis on the age of 4-7 years in a child's life, for which the project is processed, personality theory teachers in pre-school (his creativeness), the definition of environmental education in the FEP and the concept of environmental sensitivity, the influence of animals on child development preschool dedicated to the use of animals in kindergarten and the possible risks hindering the child in contact with a live animal (allergies phobia). The practical part of the detail devoted to the description and implementation of the prepared project, including its evaluation followed by action research that maps the triangle respondents child - parent -...

This study is an examination and evaluation of the outcomes of a series of courses that I helped build to create a graduate certificate. Specifically, I wanted to evaluate whether or not the online iteration of the Informal Science Institutions Environmental Education Graduate Certificate Program truly provided the long term professional development needed to enhance the skills of the formal and informal educators participating so that they could contribute meaningfully to the improvement of science literacy in their respective communities. My role as an internal evaluator provided an extraordinary opportunity to know the intent of the learning opportunities and why they were constructed in a particular fashion. Through the combination of my skills, personal experiences both within the certificate’s predecessor and as an educator, I was uniquely qualified to explore the outcomes of this program and evaluate its effectiveness in providing a long-term professional development for participants. After conducting a literature review that emphasized a need for greater scientific literacy in communities across America, it was evident that the formal education enterprise needs the support of informal educators working on the ground in myriad different settings in ways that provide science as both content and process, learning science facts and doing real science. Through a bridging of informal science educators with formal teachers, it was thought each could learn the culture of the other, making each more fluent in accessing community resources to help make these educators more collaborative and able to bridge the classroom with the outside world. This bridge promotes ongoing, lifelong learning, which in turn can help the national goal of greater scientific literacy. This study provided insight into the thinking involved in the learners’ growth as they converted theory presented in course materials into practice. Through an iterative process of reviewing the course generated content, I was able to piece through the many layers of this two year long program to examine the growth of these individuals over time. While all participants showed growth completing the certificate program, those who could fully invest themselves in the experiences seemed to have gained the most. These cases indicate the Informal Science Institutions Environmental Education Graduate Certificate Program was effective at enhancing the careers of formal and informal science educators. Additionally, it suggests informal science educators, although busy with their professional obligations and personal lives, can be successful in a formal graduate program designed to meet ISE needs as explicated in Learning Science in Informal Environments: People, Places, and Pursuits (Bell, Lewenstein, Shouse, & Feder, 2009). The emergent model indicating connections among a person’s personal life, professional life, and graduate study may also have implications for other professionals desiring to enroll in graduate school. For example, science teachers in university graduate programs may also benefit from applying this model to their lives.

The role of parents in the education of learners as well as the relationships between and amongst parents and professional educators has long been of interest to researchers and practitioners at all levels of public and private education. The consistent findings that the involvement of parents positively influences educational quality and learners’ academic achievement are well documented. However, the findings also concluded that parental involvement is difficult to implement in rural schools and its practices are more likely to take root in schools that serve urban and suburban populations than in schools that serve rural and low-income populations. Moreover, in most schools where parental involvement is functional, parents are more involved in non-academic activities than academic activities. Against this background, it can be stated that there is insufficient empirical research-based information on whether and how parental involvement in academic education of learners can be practised in economically distressed contexts, especially in Namibia. Therefore, the current study intended to critically analyse whether and how do professional educators and parents of rural lower primary schools in Namibia perceive, think about and practise involvement in the academic education of learners. The framework of this study is based on Critical and Ecological Theories. The Ecological Theory regards both parents and schools as valuable contributors to children’s learning. The critical theory claims that there is no absolute knowledge that people can grasp. All people encounter are opinions. Hence, this study challenged a long held ideal and belief of the capitalist culture in regard to positioning activities, and knowledge and resources of poor families as subordinate. The study employed a mixture of quantitative and qualitative methodological research designs. A survey about professional educators’ perceptions on parental involvement was sent to 205 schools (of which 87 responded) to collect quantitative data for Phase 1 of the study. Frequency analysis was done to identify the meaning of the quantitative data. The analysis of quantitative data grouped schools into 3 groups (high, intermediate and low) according to their levels of practising parental involvement. Six schools (2 per group) were selected for Phase 2 of the study. Interviews were conducted among 18 professional educators and 12 parents of the six schools to collect qualitative data on their perspectives, attitudes and practices of parental involvement. Content analysis was made use of to explore meaningful aspects and indicators of parental involvement in lower primary schools in Ohangwena Region. The following indicators revealed by the professional educators’ and parents’ reported experiences of parental involvement practice qualify the researched schools to be regarded as demonstrating parental involvement in learners’ academic education: conducive climate and respectful relationship; provision of educational opportunities to parents; use of community resources; provision of opportunities for technical support to parents; use of various and possible communication options; power sharing with parents and encouraging them to actively participate in decision-making bodies; and professional educators’ positive attitude towards involvement. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2008. / Curriculum Studies / unrestricted

Syftet med denna kvalitativa studie var att få kunskap om pedagogers inställning till, samtuppfattning om högläsning som företeelse i förskolan. Vi har undersökt hur och i vilketsyfte högläsning används i förskolan samt vilken uppfattning förskollärare har om högläsningensbetydelse för barns språkutveckling. I denna studie har sju informanter intervjuatsoch samtliga informanter arbetar inom förskolan. Resultatet av intervjuerna visaratt högläsning är ett vedertaget inslag i förskolans verksamhet. Syftet med högläsningen iförskolan är dock varierande, där de två mest centrala ändamålen är för omsorg samt förspråkutveckling. Resultatet klargör även att samtliga informanter anser att högläsninggynnar barns språkutveckling, men att arbetsmetoderna är av varierande karaktär. Informanternabelyser att det egna förhållningssättet är betydelsefullt i högläsningssituationerdå det vidare påverkar barnens intresse för litteratur. I resultatet framkommer samverkanmed biblioteken som en viktig faktor för informanternas språkutvecklande arbete.Dessvärre varierar tillgången till bibliotek väsentligt bland informanterna. I diskussionenframkommer våra uppfattningar om hur högläsning i förskolan kan tillämpas på ett mergenomtänkt sätt samt vilken betydelse vi anser att förskolans uteslutande ur skollagenhar för det läsfrämjande arbetet mellan bibliotek och förskola. / The aim of this qualitative study was to gain knowledge about teachers attitude towardsand perception of reading aloud as a phenomenon in preschools. We have studied howand for what purpose reading aloud is used in preschools and what perception preschoolteachers have about the importance reading aloud has for children’s language development.To this study seven informants has been interviewed and all informants work inpreschools. The results of the interviews show that reading aloud is a recognized featureof preschool activities. The aim of the read aloud activities in preschools is howevervaried, where the two most central purposes are for care and for language development.The results also clarifies that all informants believes that read aloud promotes children’slanguage development, but that the working methods are of varying character. The informantsemphasize that their own approach is important in reading situations, as it furtheraffects the children’s interest for literature. In the results, collaboration with librariansappears to be an important factor for the informants language development work. Unfortunately,the access to libraries varies considerably among the informants. The discussionreveals our perceptions of how read aloud in preschool can be applied in a more thoughtfulmanner as well as the signification we consider that the preschool’s expulsion from theschool law have for the promote reading work between libraries and preschools.

The quality of early childhood education and care programs greatly impacts children’s development and well being. The classroom environment, program content and approach and early childhood educators’ characteristics are some of the elements that influence quality and thus have effects on young children’s development. Past research has indicated that early childhood education and care programs in Quebec have received on average low/minimal or mediocre ratings of quality and were also found to lack developmentally appropriate play materials (Drouin, Bigras, Fournier, Desrosiers, & Bernard, 2004; Goelman et al., 2006; Japel, Tremblay, & Cote, 2005). The present study set out to explore elements that may influence the quality of child care classrooms in the province of Quebec. Early childhood educators’ knowledge and developmentally appropriate practice (DAP) were examined to determine the relationship between these elements. Early childhood educators’ knowledge of developmental milestones (KDM) and knowledge of appropriate play materials (KPM) were found to be weak but educators reported strong developmentally appropriate beliefs (BDAP) and practices (PDAP). Results demonstrated positive correlations between early childhood educators’ declarative knowledge of developmental milestones (KDM), knowledge of appropriate play materials (KPM) and their beliefs and practices of developmentally appropriate practice (BDAP and PDAP). Educators’ levels of declarative KDM were positively correlated with their level of declarative KPM. In addition, educators’ BDAP was positively correlated with their level of declarative KPM, but their reported DAP was not linked to their level of KDM. Implications for the field of ECEC as well as early childhood education programs in CEGEPs and Universities in Quebec and across Canada are discussed in light of the study’s findings and limitations.

The purpose of this study is to investigate and spread knowledge about how preschool teachers use spontaneous discussion as a means of increasing the environmental consciousness of children. The methods used are semi-structured interviews, and continuous and structured observation. The results show that spontaneous conversations as a method for increasing children’s consciousness of the environment occurs in practice, to a varying degree. In particular, meals and outings are perceived as the best occasions to introduce such discussions. Moreover, conversations tend to take place when children help with waste separation, handling and consumption of materials, and during planning for other activities. Large groups of children, staff shortage, and administrative tasks are perceived as the most limiting factors for having conversations about the environment. The topic can also be perceived as too wide and complex. The teachers express lacking knowledge and ideas for keeping the children interested. However, in spite of the limited time and knowledge, and other subjects in the curriculum needing attention, the teachers feel that there is room for improvement; their own disposition about the subject is limiting the spontaneous conversations. Results show that the increasing interest from society in general is enabling more conscious work with environmental issues. / Syftet med studien är att undersöka och skapa kunskap om hur pedagoger i förskolan använder det spontana samtalet för att stimulera barns miljömedvetenhet. Metoderna som använts är semistrukturerade intervjuer samt löpande och strukturerad observation. Fyra förskolor, belägna i en kommun i Mellansverige, deltog i studien. Totalt deltar sex förskollärare och en barnskötare. Resultatet visar att spontana samtal som metod för att stimulera barns miljömedvetenhet förekommer i verksamheten, i större och mindre utsträckning. Måltidssituationer och naturupplevelser upplevs vara de tillfällen där samtal om miljö utnyttjas bäst. Det förekommer även samtal om miljön i samband med sopsortering, hantering och förbrukning av material samt spontana samtal som har sin grund i planerade aktiviteter. Stora barngrupper, personalbrist och administrativa uppgifter upplevs vara orsak till svårigheten att föra spontana samtal om miljön. Samtidigt upplevs samtal om miljön ibland som stort och komplext. Pedagogerna uttrycker behovet av kunskapsbaserad information och idéer, för att fånga barnens intresse för miljöfrågor. Trots tidsbrist, begränsad kunskap och andra läroplansmål upplever pedagogerna att det finns många möjligheter att ha spontana samtal kring miljöfrågor. Deras förhållningssätt påverkar användandet av spontana samtal. Resultatet visar att det ökande intresset för miljön i samhället har resulterat i att förskoleverksamheten arbetar medvetet med miljöfrågor.

The problem was that there is a shortage of nurses who possess the leadership practices required to fill current and impending nursing leadership vacancies. Hospital-based nurse educators are in a prime position to foster a leadership mindset within nurses, and seek out potential nurse leaders; however, nurse educators first need to develop their own leadership practices and feel empowered to take on the role of mentoring future nurse leaders. The goal was to develop an online learning community where hospital-based nurse educators could develop their own nursing leadership practices through storytelling within an environment that included the elements of teaching presence, cognitive presence, and social presence. The online learning community would be considered an empowering environment, and nurse educators would improve their own feelings of empowerment. A wiki was used as the computer-user interface for the online learning community, and was designed based on the principles of human-computer interaction, learning theory, and instructional design. The wiki was separated into two learning communities, namely, the facilitated community and the self-organizing community. Some of the wiki pages were viewable by both communities, some were community specific, and other pages were private and viewable only to the nurse educator and the facilitator. The researcher/facilitator was the leader of the facilitated community, while self-organizing community members were responsible for leading their own community. The facilitator intervened in the self-organizing community when necessary, mostly to address technical issues. Through direct instruction via narrated presentations available to both communities, and leadership stories written and posted by the community members themselves, nurse educators learned about exemplary practices of leadership. Nurse educators in both communities significantly increased their own perceived leadership practices and perceived levels of empowerment. Educators in both learning communities identified that their communities included the elements of teaching, cognitive, and social presence. There were no differences between the communities, except on the teaching presence subscale of direct instruction, where the facilitated community was rated significantly higher. Given increases in empowerment levels, it was determined that both online learning communities could be considered empowering environments.

This qualitative action research study examines how critical theory defined and guided my practice as an art teacher educator while I provided inclusion training for seven preservice art teachers during their student teaching. Sources of data included a personal journal, the inclusion curriculum I created for the preservice teachers and questionnaires and interviews. Primary findings indicated that critical theory had a substantive impact on the evolving development of my teaching philosophy, in particular my attention to issues of power redistribution in the classroom and my developing notion of teaching as form of artistry. The findings of this study also indicate that the primary impact of critical theory upon the preservice teachers was the articulation of their personal narratives and its relation to the development of their teaching identities. Further, mentoring these preservice art teachers in critical theory increased their competence in solving educational dilemmas. A primary finding of this study was how significant of a role the supervising or mentor teacher plays in developing preservice teachers' identity. As this is acknowledged, valued and utilized, more collaborative relationships among these stakeholders in the education of the preservice art teacher can be forged. The study provides implications for art teacher educators as they provide inclusion training to preservice teachers. These include honoring narratives, articulating a broader notion of inclusion, and using context-specific instructional tools while preservice teachers are completing fieldwork with students with disabilities. One suggestion for future research is to conduct longitudinal studies which explore and validate the impact of critical theory upon art teacher educators and preservice art teachers during the student teaching semester and several years beyond.

No description available.

The purpose of this quantitative study was to investigate educator factors that have an impact on student achievement and overall school performance as indicated in the American College Test (ACT) scores from the district and the individual schools. Educators from a moderate-sized public school district participated in an anonymous online survey. According to the Tennessee Department of Education (TDOE) Report Card, the district ACT composite is a 20.1 (TDOE, 2018e). Two of the district’s schools’ results are higher than the district composite, while the other five are consistent with or below the district composite. Participants of this study shared their number of years of experience, amount of professional development, and education level obtained, as well as their perceptions of these factors. All data were collected through an online survey distributed to 9th-12th teachers by email from school principals. The analysis of data was based on the responses of 67 teachers from this school district. For this study, non-experimental quantitative research was used with a comparative and correlational design. As indicated in the findings of this study, teacher experience, teacher professional development hours, teacher education level, and teachers’ perceptions of these factors did not play a significant role on student performance on nationally standardized tests, specifically the ACT.