Thesis (Ed.M.)--Boston University

The problem of this study is to make an analysis of some changes that have occurred in fourth grade geography books over a period of twenty years to determine the extent to which they have been influenced by educational psychology. Implications of these changes will be drawn for the teacher.

Textbooks play an integral role in every teaching and learning process and they are the most essential tools used to transmit knowledge, skills and values to the learners. The purpose of this study was to examine if there is any change in knowledge representation and cognitive demands in the old curriculum and new curriculum grade 12 Geography textbooks. The study was informed by Bernstein’s concept of knowledge structures. The data were chapters from four grade 12 Geography textbooks. It employs a quantitative document analysis and an adapted analytical tool from Green and Naidoo (2008) was used to analyse data. The findings show that all the four texts contain more formal knowledge and more geographical images and definitions rather than everyday knowledge. The study also shows a noticeable change in the new curriculum textbooks regarding the number of tasks and questions used as a form of assessment. The new texts have a number of tasks and more questions in each task given but they show a minimal change in terms of cognitive levels, since across all the sampled textbooks most questions require understanding of factual knowledge. There are only few questions that engage learners in the other higher cognitive levels of reasoning other than understanding. In the old curriculum texts there is more geographic content and subject specific images whereas in the new curriculum texts there is less content and more space is taken by assessment tasks and images. The study concludes that in terms of content knowledge there is no substantial change in the new textbooks. There is little integration in terms of knowledge within the subject, between geography and other subjects, and between subject knowledge and everyday knowledge. There is some change in the kinds of knowledge assessed in the tasks. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2009.

This dissertation provides evidence to suggest that teaching/learning difficulties with geography in Std 3 are largely attributable to textbooks which fail as well constructed discourse and include uninterpretable illustrations. The discourse properties most likely to affect the readability of textbooks intended for ESL/EFL pupils are identified. Selected passages from two widely used Std 3 geography textbooks are analysed in terms of these properties, and are shown to fail extensively as well constructed discourse. Following classroom observation and informal interviews which confirmed the inappropriacy of the texts for Std 3 pupils, the passages were re-written, following the necessary properties of well constructed expository discourse. The readability of these two sets of texts was then tested on a group of nine Std 3 teachers in two structured interviews. The findings reveal that the re-written passages are significantly more readable than the textbook passages. Recommendations that affect education authorities, curriculum designers, syllabus makers, textbook authors, publishers and teacher training colleges are provided

In 1901 the Qing regime, in power 1644-1911, took wide-ranging measures to reform the Chinese Empire. Fundamental changes were carried out within the field of education, resulting in the completion of China’s first modern educational system in 1904. Modern schools mushroomed across China and modern textbooks introducing non-traditional knowledge became common reading in the classrooms. Modern geography textbooks informed schoolchildren about the circumstances within the Empire and, to some extent, about the conditions in foreign countries. Thus these textbooks gave them an idea of their own nation in relation to the rest of the world.   The thesis examines the images of the inhabitants of the multiethnic Qing Empire, as encountered in a wide range of textbooks and other teaching materials, on the school subject of geography, used at various institutions of modern learning during the closing years of the Qing era. The focus is on the Han Chinese majority of China Proper (i.e. the eighteen provinces), although the images of the other major ethnicities of the Qing Empire are also examined, as well as the peoples of neighbouring Korea and Japan. This study highlights the extent to which the late Qing era was influenced by Japanese approaches towards reforms and modernization, especially in the field of education. During the process of introducing modern school geography in China, Chinese textbook compilers largely relied on Japanese sources on geography, thereby facing a Japanese, nationalistic and colonial discourse, which implied that Japan, as the most civilized nation in the East, was also in her right to dominate the region. Although Chinese educationalists hardly accepted Japan’s self-proclaimed position as the rightful leader of Asia, they were nevertheless influenced by Japanese descriptions of the continent and its peoples.

Orientadores: Rúbia Barcelos Amaral, Samuel Rocha de Oliveira / Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Faculdade de Educação / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-27T22:59:12Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Bardini_LaisCristina_M.pdf: 4418562 bytes, checksum: 3ab2037e31d19e0e7c84634fa7b27f84 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015 / Resumo: Com a o passar do tempo muitas transformações ocorreram no processo de ensino e aprendizagem, mudanças que vão desde metodologias de ensino até a formação dos profissionais. No entanto, ainda há conteúdos que necessitam um olhar atento como, por exemplo, a Geometria. Hoje nota-se que este conteúdo ainda é motivo de várias discussões e pesquisas, refletindo as dificuldades que os professores apresentam em lecioná-lo. Esta situação colabora para que os professores procurem materiais que possam ajudá-los nas dúvidas decorrentes de seu dia a dia em sala de aula, sendo o mais comum deles o livro didático. Dessa forma, considerando a importância deste material didático e da Geometria, desenvolveu-se uma pesquisa qualitativa, utilizando o método de Análise de Conteúdo, procurando discutir o seguinte problema: Como alguns conteúdos geométricos estão presentes nos livros didáticos. Tendo como objetivo realizar a análise de alguns livros de Matemática utilizados na Rede Municipal de Rio Claro - SP, no 5º ano do Ensino Fundamental, e aprovados pelo PNLD. A primeira categoria, Aspectos Cotidianos, examinou como os livros têm desenvolvido a relação entre os aspectos cotidianos e a Geometria, e se esta ligação tem levado ou não o aluno a compreender, conhecer ou modificar o meio no qual está inserido; considerando que essa relação deve estar além do trabalho envolvendo apenas o uso de figuras cotidianas, semelhantes às geométricas. Já a segunda categoria, Manipulação e Concretização, analisou a questão da utilização dos materiais manipuláveis, como ela é realizada, ou qual o objetivo que a atividade propõe com sua utilização, ou ainda que papel eles desenvolvem em cada livro analisado. A terceira categoria, Nomenclatura, Identificação e Composição, apontou que apesar da literatura afirmar ser importante que o ensino das figuras geométricas envolva suas propriedades e características, a presente pesquisa constatou que o foco nos livros ainda está em apenas nomeá-las e identifica-las. Por fim, a quarta categoria, Relações entre as figuras bidimensionais e tridimensionais, expôs a importância de mostrar ao aluno a relação existente entre as figuras bidimensionais e tridimensionais; porém, essa relação foi pouco observada nos livros analisados. Enfim, este estudo também envolveu a análise das resenhas apresentadas no Guia do Livro Didático (BRASIL, 2013), trazendo o "olhar" do PNLD sobre cada obra, observando qual a avaliação e os resultados que este programa do governo faz sobre elas / Abstract: With the passage of time many changes have occurred in the process of teaching and learning, changes ranging from teaching methodologies to the training of professionals. However, there is contents that need a closer look, for example, the geometry. Today we note that this content is still a matter of much discussion and research, reflecting the difficulties that teachers have in teaches it. This contributes to teachers seek materials that can help them with questions arising from their day to day in the classroom, the most common of the textbook. Thus, considering the importance of this educational material and geometry, developed a qualitative research, using content analysis method, trying to discuss the following problem: As some geometric contents are present in textbooks. Aiming to carry out the analysis of some math books used in the Municipal Net of Rio Claro - SP, in the 5th year of elementary school, and approved by PNLD. The first category, Everyday aspects, examined how the books have developed the relationship between the daily aspects and Geometry, and this link has led or not the student to understand, know or modify the environment in which it is inserted; considering that this relationship should be beyond work involving only the use of daily figures, similar to the geometric. The second category, Handling and Implementation, addressed the issue of the use of manipulatives, as it is performed, or what purpose the proposed activity with their use, or what role they develop in the analyzed book. The third category, classification, identification and composition, pointed out that despite the literature stating it was important that the teaching of geometric figures involving their properties and characteristics, this survey found that the focus is still on the books only name them and identify them . Finally, the fourth category, relations between two-dimensional and three-dimensional figures, explained the importance of showing students the relationship between the two-dimensional and three-dimensional figures; However, this correlation was slightly observed in the analyzed books. Finally, this study also involved the analysis of the review presented in the Textbook Guide (BRAZIL, 2013), bringing the "look" of PNLD on each work, noting that the evaluation and the results that this government program is about them / Mestrado / Ensino de Ciencias e Matematica / Mestra em Ensino de Ciências e Matemática