This study investigated Lesotho junior secondary science teachers’ perceptions and use of laboratory work in teaching. Teaching is described as engagement in a relationship between a person called a teacher and another person called a student with the purpose of facilitating the student’s acquisition of content which the student previously lacked (Fenstermacher, 1986). Using the constructs of scientific inquiry and inquiry-based instruction and constructivism as theoretical lenses the study empirically explored the Junior School Science teachers’ perceptions of the aims of laboratory work and how the teachers used laboratory work in their teaching. At the centre, the investigation sought to understand whether there was any relationship between teachers’ perceptions of the aims of laboratory work and their use of laboratory work. The sample of the study consisted of fifty science teachers (n=50) conveniently selected from 12 schools in the Butha-Buthe district of Lesotho. Data were collected through closed and open ended questionnaires (n=50), semi-structured interviews (n=5), and laboratory lesson observations (n=2). Data were analyzed quantitatively using descriptive statistics and qualitatively using a combination of typological and interpretational analysis. The results show that as a group the sampled teachers held the view that the most important aim of laboratory work was to promote conceptual understanding. In their teaching, most of the sampled teachers use laboratory work to verify theory through largely verificationist, expository and non-inquiry laboratory instructional practices and strategies. The following barriers were reported by the teachers as limiting their use of inquiry oriented and student centered teaching strategies: limitations of resources; time constraints; large classes; pressure to complete the prescribed curriculum; safety issues; and preparations for external examinations. The results also suggest that the teachers’ seeing laboratory work as important for developing conceptual understanding is associated with their use of verificationistic teaching approaches. It is recommended that; Lesotho science curriculum be reviewed, and that teachers should participate in curriculum development to enhance successful implementation of inquiry instruction, professional development programmes be established, and the enactment of inquiry instruction be systematically monitored and evaluated. It is recommended that curriculum developers facilitate teachers’ transformation from expository to inquiry instruction.

The Cycle of Inquiry (COI) is a tool for emergent curriculum planning and for professional development of early childhood teachers and teacher education students. The COI includes a sequence of five organizational forms connecting analysis of documentation data with intentional planning for long-term emergent inquiry inspired by the Reggio Emilia Approach. The authors discuss and analyze the COI System through examination and analysis of the work of a student in a university early childhood teacher preparation program. Through this case study, the authors explore (1) whether a preservice teacher can learn to use the COI form-driven process to plan and facilitate emergent curriculum and (2) whether a mentor can scaffold and assess the development of an inservice or preservice teacher using the teacher’s COI documentation. The authors also describe ongoing research into use of the COI System and outline potential directions for future research.

Current educational leaders call for students to build his or her own mathematical understanding from experiences, coupled with feedback from peers, teachers, and themselves and gain a conceptual understanding of mathematics. Researchers agree that inquiry in the elementary mathematics classroom can help increase conceptual understanding. This case study focused on how elementary teachers define inquiry-based mathematics and implement it in their classrooms. Interviews, observations and lesson analysis were used to investigate what identities, relationships and activities look like in an elementary classroom that uses inquiry. All of the participants felt "problem solving" and "working collaboratively" were essential for inquiry but each teacher defined them differently. Questioning was also an important feature of inquiry according to the teachers. Professional development seemed to have a strong impact on why these teachers use inquiry in their classrooms. As far as the relationships necessary to teach using inquiry, teachers did not indicate that administrators’ nor peers’ support were necessary to continue using this type of pedagogy in their classrooms. The participants believed that including inquiry in mathematics was a best practice and continued to incorporate inquiry because they felt it allowed their students to gain a deeper understanding of mathematics. The local field of each teacher influenced the planning they did before the lesson and the activities they included in their inquiry instruction. The written plans of each participant differed greatly. The requirements of the district had an effect on how much detail the participants included in their planning documents. Also, whether they were planning for their entire grade level or just themselves influenced how much detail was included. Another aspect of the mathematics classroom that was influenced by the local field was including a software program, which is expected to be a part of students’ daily mathematics instruction. The various ways inquiry is carried out and how the local field influences this is important for educators at all levels to understand. This study has implications for teachers, administrators and teacher educators. Inquiry means a variety of things to elementary teachers within this study. If mathematics educator leaders, teachers and administrators want to infuse more inquiry into the classroom, the many ways it is carried out needs to be understood.

Using a framework for variations of classroom inquiry (National Research Council [NRC], 2000, p. 29), this study explored 40 inservice elementary teachers' planning, modification, and enactment of kit-based science curriculum materials. As part of the study, a new observation protocol was modified from an existing protocol (Practices of Science Observation Protocol [P-SOP]) to measure the amount of teacher direction in science inquiry lessons (Practices of Science Observation Protocol + Directedness [P-SOPd]). An embedded mixed methods design was employed to investigate four questions: 1. How valid and reliable is the P-SOPd? 2. In what ways do inservice elementary teachers adapt existing elementary science curriculum materials across the inquiry continuum? 3. What is the relationship between the overall quality of inquiry and variations of inquiry in elementary teachers' enacted science instruction? 4. How do inservice elementary teachers' ideas about the inquiry continuum influence their adaptation of elementary science curriculum materials? Each teacher chose three lessons from a science unit for video-recorded observation, and submitted lesson plans for the three lessons. Lesson plans and videos were scored using the P-SOPd. The scores were also compared between the two protocols to determine if a correlation existed between the level of inquiry (measured on the P-SOP) and the amount of teacher direction (measured on the P-SOPd). Findings indicated no significant differences between planned and enacted lessons for the amount of teacher direction, but a correlation existed between the level of inquiry and the amount of teacher direction. In effect, the elementary teachers taught their science curriculum materials with a high level of fidelity for both the features of inquiry and the amount of teacher direction. A smaller group of three case study teachers were followed for the school year to give a more in-depth explanation of the quantitative findings. Case study findings revealed that the teachers' science instruction was teacher-directed while their conceptions of inquiry were student-directed. This study contributes to existing research on preservice teachers' learning about the continuum (Biggers & Forbes, 2012) and inservice teachers' ideas about the five features of inquiry (Biggers & Forbes, in press).

The purpose of this study was to understand the life history of a female teacher by examining her beliefs about leaving a teaching legacy and by analyzing the narratives of four educational leaders as they reflect on the generative behaviors of this teacher. The research questions guiding this study were: (a) What elements of this teacher's life history contributed to creating a legacy of educational leaders? (b) What are the perspectives of the educational leaders impacted by this teacher as they relate to crafting an educational legacy? (c) How do the life stories of the teacher and educational leaders intersect to reveal narrative resonance - the ability of stories to interact in such a way that they influence other stories? A review of relevant literature examined legacy creation or generativity. In addition, this study critiqued scholarship that extends narrative research approaches, specifically, fictional research texts. Since fictional research products can be catalysts for reflection and discussion, the final chapter of this study is presented as a fictionalized research-narrative that emerged from analysis of the data. The data in this study included interview texts, participant artwork, reflections from the participant's journal, excerpts from the researcher's journal, and poetry written both by the participant and the researcher. The data were analyzed by using open and focused coding, employing the constant comparison process, and through artifact analysis. The data analysis of this qualitative study resulted in specific findings. First, the main participant demonstrated generative traits contributing to a legacy of educational leaders. Her compassion for all students, her passion for teaching/learning, her content knowledge, and her flexibility in the classroom all manifested themselves in the lives of the educational leaders participating in this study. Additionally, the narratives from the participant demonstrated narrative resonance, Stories, it seems, have their own legacies.

<p>Bakgrund: För att avgöra huruvida aktieanalytiker som grupp betraktat tillför värde för investerare måste frågan ställas om det är lönsamt att följa analytikernas konsensusrekommendationer. Ett problem med att följa dessa är att rekommendationerna som utgör konsensus kan förbli oförändrade under långa perioder vilket innebär att de vanligtvis blir mindre informativa med tiden. Studier som istället utvärderar värdet av reviderade rekommendationer har visat att det kan vara mer lönsamt att följa analytiker när de ändrar uppfattning om en aktie.</p><p>Syfte: Syftet med studien är att utvärdera revideringar av aktieanalytikers rekommendationer på den nordiska marknaden och att analysera investeringsstrategier baserade på dessa som tar hänsyn till transaktionskostnaders inverkan på avkastningen.</p><p>Genomförande: De reviderade rekommendationerna har utvärderats kvantitativt med data från Inquiry Financial för perioden 2006 – 2009. Vi konstruerar sex portföljer för varje studerad marknad, där de olika portföljerna består av upp- respektive nedgraderade aktier med olika innehavsperioder för att testa huruvida revideringarna kan sägas vara informativa.</p><p>Resultat: Resultaten visar att reviderade rekommendationer är informativa på flera av de studerade marknaderna, där aktiekurser fortsätter att stiga för uppgraderingar och sjunka för nedgraderingar flera månader efter att revideringen har skett. En investerare som agerade på revideringarna hade kunnat generera överavkastning i ett flertal utvärderade strategier innan justering för transaktionskostnader skett. När hänsyn tagits till transaktionskostnadernas inverkan genererar ingen strategi signifikant alfa, men resultaten indikerar ändå att det finns ett värde i att följa revideringarna.</p> / <p>Background: To determine whether or not stock analysts as a group add value for investors the question that should be asked is if it’s profitable to follow the analysts' consensus recommendations. A problem with following these is that the recommendations that enter into the consensus can remain unchanged for long periods which mean that they generally become less informative over time. Studies that instead evaluate recommendation revisions have shown that it can be more profitable to follow the analysts when they change their opinions regarding a stock.</p><p>Aim: The aim of this study is to evaluate analysts’ recommendation revisions in the Nordic markets and to analyze investment strategies based on these revisions that consider the impact of transaction costs.</p><p>Completion: The recommendation revisions have been evaluated quantitatively using data from Inquiry Financial for the period 2006 – 2009. We construct six portfolios for each market, where the portfolios consist of up- and downgraded stocks with different holding periods in order to determine how informative the revisions are.</p><p>Findings: We find that recommendation revisions are informative in several of the studied markets, where stock prices continue to drift upward for upgrades and downward for downgrades several months after the revision. An investor acting on these revisions would have been able to generate abnormal returns in a number of considered strategies, gross of transaction costs. When the impact of transaction costs is considered no strategy generates significant alpha due to the frequent rebalancing required, but the results nonetheless indicates that there is value in following the revisions.</p>

Bakgrund: För att avgöra huruvida aktieanalytiker som grupp betraktat tillför värde för investerare måste frågan ställas om det är lönsamt att följa analytikernas konsensusrekommendationer. Ett problem med att följa dessa är att rekommendationerna som utgör konsensus kan förbli oförändrade under långa perioder vilket innebär att de vanligtvis blir mindre informativa med tiden. Studier som istället utvärderar värdet av reviderade rekommendationer har visat att det kan vara mer lönsamt att följa analytiker när de ändrar uppfattning om en aktie. Syfte: Syftet med studien är att utvärdera revideringar av aktieanalytikers rekommendationer på den nordiska marknaden och att analysera investeringsstrategier baserade på dessa som tar hänsyn till transaktionskostnaders inverkan på avkastningen. Genomförande: De reviderade rekommendationerna har utvärderats kvantitativt med data från Inquiry Financial för perioden 2006 – 2009. Vi konstruerar sex portföljer för varje studerad marknad, där de olika portföljerna består av upp- respektive nedgraderade aktier med olika innehavsperioder för att testa huruvida revideringarna kan sägas vara informativa. Resultat: Resultaten visar att reviderade rekommendationer är informativa på flera av de studerade marknaderna, där aktiekurser fortsätter att stiga för uppgraderingar och sjunka för nedgraderingar flera månader efter att revideringen har skett. En investerare som agerade på revideringarna hade kunnat generera överavkastning i ett flertal utvärderade strategier innan justering för transaktionskostnader skett. När hänsyn tagits till transaktionskostnadernas inverkan genererar ingen strategi signifikant alfa, men resultaten indikerar ändå att det finns ett värde i att följa revideringarna. / Background: To determine whether or not stock analysts as a group add value for investors the question that should be asked is if it’s profitable to follow the analysts' consensus recommendations. A problem with following these is that the recommendations that enter into the consensus can remain unchanged for long periods which mean that they generally become less informative over time. Studies that instead evaluate recommendation revisions have shown that it can be more profitable to follow the analysts when they change their opinions regarding a stock. Aim: The aim of this study is to evaluate analysts’ recommendation revisions in the Nordic markets and to analyze investment strategies based on these revisions that consider the impact of transaction costs. Completion: The recommendation revisions have been evaluated quantitatively using data from Inquiry Financial for the period 2006 – 2009. We construct six portfolios for each market, where the portfolios consist of up- and downgraded stocks with different holding periods in order to determine how informative the revisions are. Findings: We find that recommendation revisions are informative in several of the studied markets, where stock prices continue to drift upward for upgrades and downward for downgrades several months after the revision. An investor acting on these revisions would have been able to generate abnormal returns in a number of considered strategies, gross of transaction costs. When the impact of transaction costs is considered no strategy generates significant alpha due to the frequent rebalancing required, but the results nonetheless indicates that there is value in following the revisions.

E-learning tools such as Calibrated Peer Review (CPR) have made writing assignments easier to implement and grade; however, we have limited knowledge of how CPR affects student scientific writing. Past CPR research has examined how CPR generated scores change across multiple CPR writing assignments for the purpose of reporting student learning gains. This study will not rely on CPR generated score data. This study (1) independently evaluated the impact of CPR on student writing of ecological inquiry report components using a grading criteria instrument and (2) explored how the revision process influenced the quality of ecological inquiry report components through text analysis. A web-based science inquiry project was implemented in a large (up to 500 students) introductory ecology course. Students observed grizzly bears at McNeil River Falls in Alaska using Bear Cam picture stills. They developed and tested hypotheses about grizzly bear spatial distribution and interactions and reported findings in individual ecological inquiry reports. Students submitted reports to CPR and anonymously reviewed three peer reports and self-assessed their own. Finally, students were given one-week following CPR to revise reports based on peer reviews and submit online. A 28-item grading criteria instrument (9 scales) was used to examine how students revised ecological inquiry reports post CPR. Eight paired t-tests were used to assess the pre-post CPR changes in scores for individual grading criteria scales or components. Cohen's d effect size was used to explore how achievement or performance level, ethnicity, gender and major influenced student text changes to ecological inquiry report components post CPR. Text analysis using a subset of 27 sample reports (pre-post CPR) assessed the amount and location of text changes and the impact of these revisions on the quality of ecological inquiry report components. Common errors in ecological inquiry report components post CPR were also analyzed. Results showed that CPR and revision significantly improved the scores related to the objective, sampling and discussion scales. Analyses using Cohen's d effect sizes illustrated interesting but inconsistent patterns related to the influence of student performance level, gender, ethnicity, and major on pre-post CPR score gains. Text analysis revealed the majority of helpful revisions were related to making the objective identifiable, reporting of sample size and discussion of study limitations and future questions raised by individual ecological inquiry projects. Text analysis shows three common reasons participants failed to meet grading criteria post CPR. Un-testable hypotheses, insufficient descriptions for sample selection, data analysis, variables collected and revisions of only easy grading criteria components. This study provided direct evidence of CPR's effects on student writing and provided a greater understanding of pattern of revision process following CPR.

In educational development, much focus is put on the use of computers and other digital tools to enhance teaching and learning. One of the most used digital communication forms is one-to-one communication using text, images, and video. One-to-one communication for educational purposes has, however, so far received only modest attention in research. The purpose of this thesis is to explore inquiry-based one-to-one online education. An additional purpose is to explore opportunities and limitations with the Community of Inquiry framework, one of the most used models for analysis of online learning, when analyzing one-to-one online education. A particular interest is put on the role of emotions in the analyses. The empirical case used in the thesis is the Math Coach program who employs one-to-one education for k-12 students in mathematics via chat and a shared digital whiteboard. The thesis consists of an introduction and four papers. First, in Paper I online coaching is defined, explained, and discussed through a review of previous research and a study of the establishment and operation of the Math Coach program. Secondly, the Community of Inquiry framework is adapted for use in one-to-one settings forming the Relationship of Inquiry framework. Paper II initiates the adaption using a survey study, Paper III evaluates the role of emotions in the framework, and Paper IV consolidates the Relationship of Inquiry framework with a comprehensive description of its components and a transcript coding procedure. The findings indicate that inquiry-based one-to-one online education can be explored utilizing Online coaching as a Relationship of Inquiry. Online coaching is theoretically grounded in collaborative constructivism, critical thinking, and proximal development. It is defined as an inquiry-based learning activity where a person gets support on a specific subject matter from a more knowledgeable person using the Internet. The Relationship of Inquiry is a conceptual connection that is built between two persons that engage in a critical discourse in order resolve an educational issue. Central for the framework is the elements of cognitive presence, teaching presence, social presence, and emotional presence. Emotional presence is especially examined and confirmed as a critical interdependent element of the framework. / En stor del av det utvecklingsarbete som idag bedrivs inom utbildningsväsendet handlar om hur datorer och annan digital teknik kan användas för att förbättra undervisning och lärande. Digital kommunikation mellan två individer – en-till-en-kommunikation – i form av text, bilder och video har fått stort genomslag i samhället, men det finns begränsat med forskning om dess användning och användbarhet i utbildningssammanhang. Det primära syftet med denna avhandling är att utforska nätbaserad en-till-en-utbildning. Ett ytterligare syfte är att undersöka möjligheter och begränsningar med användandet av ramverket "Community of Inquiry" vid analys av nätbaserad utbildning. I avhandlingen studeras särskilt den emotionella dimensionen av ramverket. Som studieobjekt används Mattecoach på nätet, en verksamhet där grundskole- och gymnasieelever får stöd – coachas – i sina matematikstudier genom att chatta med lärarstudenter via textmeddelanden och en delad digital skrivtavla. Avhandlingen är skriven på engelska och består av en inledning och fyra vetenskapliga artiklar. I artikel I definieras, förklaras och diskuteras läraktiviteten nätcoachning. I artikel II introduceras ramverket "Relationship of Inquiry". Detta bygger på ''Community of Inquiry'', som är ett väletablerat hjälpmedel för att analysera kommunikation inom större grupper, men har anpassats för en-till-en-kommunikation. I artikel III utvecklas ramverket vidare genom att speciellt studera den emotionella aspekten av lärande. I artikel IV bekräftas ramverket genom en fullständig beskrivning av dess ingående delar och en transkriptionsanalys. Studien indikerar att nätbaserad en-till-en-utbildning kan utforskas utifrån läraktiviteten nätcoachning och ramverket ''Relationship of Inquiry'' (Online coaching as a Relationship of Inquiry). Nätcoachning definieras som en undersökande läraktivitet där en person via Internet får stöd i sin kunskapsutveckling från en annan individ som är mer kunnig inom området. Dess teoretiska grund bygger på kollaborativ konstruktivism, kritiskt tänkande och proximal utveckling. I avhandlingen studeras den relation som bildas mellan coach och elev som genom en kritisk och reflekterande dialog löser elevens matematikproblem. Ramverket är uppbyggt kring fyra delar: det kognitiva elementet, lärarelementet, det sociala elementet samt det emotionella elementet. Det emotionella elementet har särskilt studerats och visade sig vara ett viktigt element. – / <p>QC 20150513</p>

Despite repeated calls internationally, nationally and provincially to place the development of ecoliteracy as a curricular priority, there continues to be a lack of attention provided towards this goal, in particular opportunities for direct contact with the natural world in terms of fostering ecoliteracy in student teachers (Tuncer, 2009; Davis, 2009, Gough, 2009, Beckford, 2008; Blanchet-Cohen & Elliot, 2011). Teachers play key roles in advancing environmental education efforts and the environmental literacy of future generations. Insufficient teacher preparation has been identified as one factor in the weakness of environmental education efforts and environmental education curriculum (Beckford, 2008; Lin, 2002; Knapp, 2000). Furthermore, adequate environmental education preparation of students in teacher-training programs is essential for helping future teachers design and implement effective environmental education curriculum (Cutter-Mackenzie and Smith, 2003; Mc Keown-Ice, 2000; Spork, 1992)..Future generations of students need to begin to perceive themselves, once again, in terms of being connected to a larger story which includes the more-than-human world. I argue that education needs to play an important role in that re-connection, and that teacher education, as a fertile place of in-betweenness, can represent an important step toward that goal. Using a combination narrative and phenomenological inquiry, I explore the storied insights of ten student teachers as they struggle to navigate the tensions, disruptions and opportunities that form the waters between their nature-self and their teacher-self. Along with a questioning of current conventional approaches to teaching ecoliteracy in schools, the Aboriginal concept of “heart knowledge” (Aluli-Meyer, 2008) is provided as a way of knowing which is congruent with the aims of an holistic ecoliteracy within teacher education. / Graduate / 0727 / 0530 / cfiller@uvic.ca