Thesis (M. Ed.)--University of Hong Kong, 1998. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 100-111).

Thesis (M. Ed.)--University of Hong Kong, 1998. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Mississippi State University. Department of Counselor Education and Educational Psychology. / Title from title screen. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.Ed.)--University of Hong Kong, 1998. / Includes bibliographical references. Also available in print.

Thesis (M.Ed.)--University of Hong Kong, 1998. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 100-111). Also available in print.

x, 138 p. : ill. (some col.) / Considerable literature supports that teachers are important to student achievement, but few studies have assessed the student voice to determine what specific teacher behaviors and interactions affect achievement. This study is a secondary analysis of existing data from a local implementation of a national survey of student appraisals of teacher-student relationships, school experiences and their impacts on achievement. Data were analyzed to explore differences in perceptions for White and Black students, for higher- and lower-performing Black students and for Black males and females who attend suburban, high SES, high-performing, predominantly White high schools. Findings indicate an achievement gap between Black and White students, Black higher- and lower-performing and Black male and female students in predominantly White high schools. Students' perceptions of specific teacher interactions, school experiences and achievement differed and were impacted by race and gender effects, but more positive appraisals of student-teacher interactions and school experiences were positively related to improved achievement for all students. / Committee in charge: Dr. Charles Martinez, Co-Chair; Dr. Gerald Tindal, Co-Chair; Dr. Scott Pratt, Member; Dr. Gerald L. Rosiek, Member

The way in which adolescents perceive themselves and interact with peers, teachers and caregivers could determine whether they would drink alcohol and smoke dagga or not. Without positive self-concept amongst adolescents and experiencing of positive communication with caregivers, it can be said, there is a likelihood of drinking alcohol and smoking of dagga by adolescents. A 52-item questionnaire was constructed on the basis of current international and South African research on the adolescents who drink alcohol and smoke dagga. The biographical data was used as independent variables in the questionnaire. These independent variables included questions on age, gender, grade and the person who takes care of adolescent. The questionnaire was completed by 443 adolescents in grade 9 and 11 from one secondary school in Soweto. Of this total, 48,1% were males (N=213) and 51,9% were females (N=230). A factor analysis of the questionnaire revealed two statistically significant constructs and they were termed “Experience of locus of control with respect to school” (Chronbach alpha of 0.900) and “Experience of communication with caregivers by adolescents (0.892). With respect to the bivariate analysis of the relationships between (1)the gender of adolescents (2)the age of adolescents and who is the caregiver to the adolescent and the (1)drinking of alcohol and the (2)smoking of dagga, the following was found: • adolescents who lived with stepparents are more inclined to drink alcohol than adolescents who lived with both mother and father, single parents and other. • a significantly higher proportion of males drink alcohol man females who drink alcohol. • a significantly higher proportion of older adolescents (17 years, 18 years and older) drink alcohol than younger adolescents (16 years, 15 years and younger). The impact of this research would indicate that adolescents with negative self-concept about themselves display a significantly greater inclination towards drinking alcohol and smoking of dagga. Also, adolescents who live with stepparents display a significantly more negative experience of drinking alcohol and smoking of dagga than adolescents who live with both mother and father, single parents and other. / Prof. C.P.H Myburgh

M.Ed. / Please refer to full text to view abstract

Prior to the development of interactive television, schools that were either geographically isolated or financially restricted were often unable to provide courses that may have been essential for students. Interactive television has helped such school districts provide appropriate courses for their students. Because student self-efficacy is a significant indicator of student success, the relationship between distance learning and students' self-efficacy requires research. The problem of the study was to examine the impact of site location in a distance learning environment on student self-efficacy in Spanish instruction. The participants in this study were junior high school students enrolled in distance-learning Spanish classes at two junior high schools in a north central Texas independent school district. All of the students were taught by the same instructor. The age range of the students was from 11 to 14 years of age, and all students were in either the seventh or the eighth grade. Students took a modified version of the Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire at the end of each treatment. Using the counterbalanced design, each subject was matched to themselves. T-tests for nonindependent samples were used to compare the two treatments. The findings indicate that there is no significant difference in the level of student self-efficacy by site location. The findings in this study support the use of distance learning as a medium for Spanish instruction at the junior high school level. Because of the strong statistical relationship between self-efficacy and student performance, teachers and administrators can reasonably believe that site location will not hamper their students' success.

A dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Education in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Education in the Department of Educational Psychology and Special Education at the University of Zululand, 2004. / The present investigation consists of two objectives. The first aim is to investigate the nature of career aspirations of Black high school learners. The second aim is to find out whether learners' characteristics have an influence on their choice of a career. A questionnaire was administered to a group of 102 learners from grades ten to twelve. The findings indicate that a high percentage of respondents hold positive attitudes towards career aspiration. Results also indicate that variables such as year of study, age, gender and educational stream have no significant influence on career aspirations.