This study investigated the incorporation of student video production into Year 7 science classes and determined associated learning benefits. Availability of digital cameras and movie editing software make student in-class video production a possibility. However, the introduction of technology into classrooms often precedes an understanding of its effective utilisation. While the science classroom was ideal to utilise the audio/visual benefits of video production, a framework to streamline and guide students’ production was needed to ensure productive learning. The writing-to-learn in science model (Prain & Hand, 1996a) and Science Writing Heuristic (Hand & Keys, 1999) were selected to fulfil this role. The adaptation of the writing-to-learn in science model to include video production as a text type coincided with a call from Prain (2006) to extend research to determine the influence of “new technology-mediated, multimodal learning environments” (p. 79) on students’ science learning. Two intact Year 7 classes conducted the same science investigation following the writing-to-learn in science model, one class (Yr 7A, N = 21) used digital video to record and report their findings while the other class (Yr 7B, N = 22) used a traditional method of poster making. Students worked in mixed gender and ability groups of three. Data instruments included pretest, posttest, delayed posttest, a repeated question instruments, and content analysis of the students’ final products. Two groups from each class were video tracked throughout their investigations and were later interviewed. Video data were transcribed and analysed to determine patterns of learning behaviour. This study showed that video production fits comfortably into the writing-to-learn in science framework. Making videos in science delivered learning advantages through the audio/visual nature of video production and the learning behaviours the production process elicited. The nature of video, as a visual and oral medium, allowed students to capture their science investigations accurately and then continue to manipulate the content through reviewing and editing. Through video production, students demonstrated heightened awareness of, and responsibility for, the learning of their audience that led to rehearsal of science concepts before filming. Data analysis revealed that video students collaborated, used higher order thinking, and engaged in the underlying scientific concepts more than the poster makers. This study is significant as it explores in a science classroom context, an emerging technology, already widely utilised in students’ out-of-school lives. Science educators are calling for the broadening of what constitutes a scientific text, the greater inclusion and manipulation of multi-modal representations for science students, and an increased emphasis on socio-communicative approaches to science learning. Additionally, incorporation of technology and associated means of learning, authentic to many students’ out-of-school lives, is advocated for the classroom. Student video production in science answers these calls. It achieves this while delivering unique learning benefits that add significantly to student attainment in science. Video production is playing a greater role in acquisition and dissemination of science knowledge. The use of video production in science and society would seem destined to increase exponentially. This study has investigated one application of the use of video production in a middle years science class, however the implications for further research are vast as the technology develops, the societal usage increases, and the scientific applications of video production become more powerful and widespread.

The presence in state standards of the Taxonomy of Educational Objectives: Cognitive Domain (referred to Bloom 1 in this study) and A Taxonomy of Learning, Teaching, and Assessing (referred to as Bloom 2 in this study) was examined in this qualitative investigation. Standards for the English language arts eighth grade curriculum were chosen for examination in order to maximize the opportunity for all Bloom levels to appear; all states have language arts standards and eighth grade is the highest grade level at which NCLB testing is mandated. The standards documents of the 36 stated that have language arts standards unique to eighth grade comprised the analyzed data source and were accessed from state education websites. Descriptive narrations of cognitive levels, benchmarks, indicators, strands, sub-strands, writers of the standards, and any and all references to Bloom 1 and Bloom 2 were investigated. Inter-coder reliability was calculated to address the major research question regarding the clarity of reference to cognitive level of the standards. The qualitative content analysis research methodology chosen to answer the study's research questions culminated in the emergence of four major themes. 1) The extent to which the state standards were classifiable according to Bloom 1 or Bloom 2 depended largely upon consonance in assumptions made by the coders regarding a presumed conditions component for the standards; state standards lack condition components specifying what learners are presented with or have access to at the time the competency stated in the standard is demonstrated. 2) Eighth grade English language arts state standards incorporate cognitive learning levels of Bloom 1 and/or Bloom 2 through the range of Bloom levels. The verb "use" was noted as the most frequent taxonomic verb appearing in the standards. 3) Only five states directly referenced Bloom 1 or Bloom 2 in the documents' introduction/overview, table of contents, document guides, acknowledgements, appendices, and/or bibliography. 4) Of the 2,566 standard statements examined, 96 percent appear to be above the lowest Bloom 1 (Knowledge) and Bloom 2 (Remember) level, employing the researcher's assumed condition component. Overall, results showed that while some states incorporate Bloom 1 and/or Bloom 2, a majority of the standards appear to be written in the lower levels of the Bloom taxonomies. The researcher suggested strategies such as collaboration, consulting, training, and surveying students, parents, teachers, administrators, state committees, and agencies on knowledge of and inclusion of the Bloom taxonomic frameworks in order to improve the clarity of the intended cognitive levels set by the state standards.

Kritiskt tänkande genomsyrar styrdokumenten i den svenska skolan, men vet lärarna vad kritiskt tänkande egentligen innebär? Syftet med studien är att utforska vilka olika uppfattningar lärare har kring begreppet kritiskt tänkande samt variationer på dessa uppfattningar utifrån ett fenomenografiskt perspektiv. Syftet är även att synliggöra hur lärare inkluderar kritiskt tänkande i sin undervisning. Vår datainsamling består av kvalitativa intervjuer. Sju intervjupersoner valdes ut utifrån ett riktat urval. De intervjuades utsagor är sammanställda utifrån en fenomenografisk analys där tre hierarkiska beskrivningskategorier framkommit för de uppfattningar som finns hos lärare kring begreppet kritiskt tänkande. Dessa kategorier är analys, syntes och värdering. För att synliggöra hur lärare inkluderar kritiskt tänkande i undervisningen i naturvetenskap har fyra parallella kategorier framkommit. Dessa är kritiskt tänkande genom experiment, kritiskt tänkande genom att kritiskt granska källor, spontant arbete med kritiskt tänkande samt kritiskt tänkande ämnesöverskridande.

This multiple paper dissertation addressed several issues in Problem-based learning (PBL) through conceptual analysis, meta-analysis, and empirical research. PBL is characterized by ill-structured tasks, self-directed learning process, and a combination of individual and cooperative learning activities. Students who lack content knowledge and problem-solving skills may struggle to address associated tasks that are beyond their current ability levels in PBL. This dissertation addressed a) scaffolding characteristics (i.e., scaffolding types, delivery method, customization) and their effects on students’ perception of optimal challenge in PBL, b) the possibility of virtual learning environments for PBL, and c) the importance of information literacy for successful PBL learning. Specifically, this dissertation demonstrated the effectiveness of scaffolding customization (i.e., fading, adding, and fading/adding) to enhance students’ self-directed learning in PBL. Moreover, the effectiveness of scaffolding was greatest when scaffolding customization is self-selected than based on fixed-time interval and their performance. This suggests that it might be important for students to take responsibility for their learning in PBL and individualized and just-in-time scaffolding can be one of the solutions to address K-12 students’ difficulties in improving problem-solving skills and adjusting to PBL.

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This study examined the effects of professional development in the form of a teacher study group and a particular discussion approach, Collaborative Reasoning (CR) (Anderson, et al., 2001) upon teachers' questioning and students' levels of thinking during discussion of text. The study explored how five middle school teachers achieved a deeper understanding of teachers' authentic questioning and the facilitation of CR discussion. The Formative and Design Experiment (FandDE) framework was used in this investigation. Both qualitative and quantitative data were collected. Teachers coded transcripts of one baseline and four CR discussions for each teacher. Transcripts were coded for teachers' CR instructional moves, CR features incorporated by the students in discussion, and the levels of thinking supporting students' responses. Data indicated that the nature of discussions progressed from recitation to more dialogical discussion patterns. Teachers implemented more authentic questioning, and students were observed to use more higher-order thinking in the responses. Students discourse showed a higher incidence of exploratory talk and uptake. Students used multiple kinds of evidence from personal experience, texts, and knowledge from previous reading/lecture/discussion to support their arguments. The data suggest that the implementation of a specific discussion model may enhance teachers' questioning and encourage students to engage in higher-order thinking and reasoning when discussing text. / Ph. D.

Technological/engineering design based learning (T/E DBL) provides a context in which students may utilize content knowledge and skills to develop prototype solutions to real-world problems. In science education, design based science (DBS) utilizes technological/engineering design based approaches in science education as a means for enhancing the purpose of and relevance for scientific inquiry by contextualizing it within the goal of developing a solution to a real-world problem. This study addressed the need to investigate the ways in which students utilize higher order thinking skills, demonstrated through the use of knowledge associated with declarative, schematic, and strategic cognitive demand when in engaged in DBS activities. The purpose of this study was to determine what relationships exist between engagement in DBS and changes in students' depth of understanding of the science concepts associated with the development of design solutions. Specifically, the study determined how students' abilities to demonstrate an understanding of the science concepts, required by assessments of different cognitive demand, change as they were engaged in a design-based science unit associated with heat transfer. Utilizing two assessment instruments, a pre/post-1/post-2 test and content analysis of student design portfolios based on Wells (2012) and utilizing Li's (2001) system to code student responses, the following research question was addressed: What changes in students' science concept knowledge (declarative, schematic, and strategic demand) are evidenced following engagement in design based learning activities? Although the results are not generalizable to other populations due to the limitations associated with the study, it can be concluded that design based learning activities incorporated in science courses can foster higher order thinking. Results from the study suggests that students' abilities to demonstrate their understanding of certain science concepts through higher order thinking, including utilizing concept knowledge strategically in open-ended problem solving, increased following engagement in design based learn activities. Results have implications in technological/engineering design education, in science education, and in integrative STEM education. Implications include the utility of design portfolios as both an assessment instrument and learning tool to ensure that concept knowledge is explicitly connected to and used in the design activity. / Ed. D.

African American male students (AAMSs) can benefit from literacy instruction that is student-based and geared towards using higher-level thinking skills. The conceptual framework was guided by Dewey's constructivism theory, the purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore whether high school English language arts (ELA) teachers in an urban-suburban Midwest region of the United States have sufficient knowledge and skills to incorporate higher order thinking skills (HOT) instruction for AAMSs. Five ELA teachers from a low-performing, urban-suburban high school in the Midwest region of the United States participated in semistructured interviews; observations were conducted in the classroom, and lesson plans were reviewed. Patterns, categories, and themes emerged through using the coding process by breaking down the data into units and then grouped according to their characteristics. According to the findings, participants from this study suggested that problem- solving was the main higher level thinking skill for AAMSs. These local ELA teachers also used the Socratic questioning method as their primary instructional strategy but limited constructivist activities for AAMSs to engage during the instructional process. The findings from the data collection support the development of a professional training program. The professional development program could help teachers engage AAMSs in increasing their academic endeavors. ELA teachers can participate in professional learning communities by communicating concerns about AAMSs, using HOT skills to increase AAMSs literacy performance, become change agents, and promote a positive social change by using constructivist practices into school curriculum and instructions for AAMSs, eventually closing the achievement gap.

With the introduction of outcomes-based education (OBE) in South Africa the role of teachers and learners in the teaching and learning process had to change. Teachers had to adopt a facilitation role and learners had to focus on active learning and the mastering of outcomes. With the focus of OBE on outcomes, teachers in the teachinglearning process are continuously pressurised not only to focus on the teaching of theoretical subject matter, but also the development of higher-order cognitive skills (HOCS). Since 2006 the development of learners' HOCS in South African Schools have been emphasized in the Further Education and Training Phase (grades 10-12) through the National Curriculum Statements. Teachers in Business Studies (the new subject that replaced Business Economics as secondary school subject in 2006) have doubts in their ability to develop learners' HOCS because they doubt their own ability to demonstrate HOCS. This study indicates that the teacher training of Business Studies students should focus on the development of their HOCS, because they won't be able to develop their learners' HOCS if they can't demonstrate it themselves. The purpose of this study was to develop a teaching model for the development of education students in Business Studies' HOCS. Lecturers can use the teaching model during teacher training, to develop education students' knowledge of HOeS in Business studies, their ability to demonstrate HOCS and their critical and creative thinking skills. This study was approached from a pragmatic research paradigm. A literature study was conducted to motivate the rationale for the development of education students' HOCS, to investigate the meaning of HOCS and to determine the way in which HOCS can be learned, taught and assessed. The proposed teaching model that was developed, is based on the literature study. From the literature study a workable definition of HOCS was developed for the aim of this study. The literature study also showed that HOCS can best be learned and taught in a social constructivist learning environment, where lecturers enable students to construct their own knowledge and skills, with a combination of inductive teaching, cooperative learning and problem/activity based learning. During the empirical component of this study the teaching model for development of HOCS was applied to education students in Business Studies. Data was gathered over a period of four months by means of a mixed methods research design. This research design acted as a purposeful research framework wherein quantitative and qualitative methods were used to solve the research problem. Findings from the results of the empirical study indicated the extent to which the teaching model led to the development of the education students' HOCS, the experience of the education students and the way in which the model was executed. The contribution of this research is viewed as a clarification of the concept HOCS, the rationale for the development of HOCS and the proposed teaching model. / Thesis (PhD (Education))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2010