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The purpose of this research was to investigate the structure and function of a prefect system in primary schools predominantly attended by black learners. It is the wish of learners to partake fully in school governance to bring about desirable changes within the education system. The riots that broke out in 1976, proved beyond doubt that learners no longer wished to be onlookers in the system, but to actively take part in stabilising it for their own future. In the past, learners who served in the prefect council were randomly chosen and elected by the principal and the staff. This was done in isolation of the learners in the school. Favouritism and popularity were the main features for a learner to be elected. At any given moment during the course of the year, a member of the council who did not perform according to the principles as set out by staff members, was sacked and replaced by anybody who they felt would do a better job. The democratic government that was voted for in 1996 brought about drastic changes within the education system. Unlike in the past, where learners were omitted as part of education stakeholders, the present government gives due consideration to learners' inputs and ideas. Legislative Acts such as the South African Schools Act (Act No. 84 of 1996) were passed to accommodate the needs and aspirations of learners. In terms of section 10 (3) of Act No. 84 of 1996, public schools are allowed to institute a prefect system where necessary. The latter statement urged the compilation of this research to bring primary schools predominantly attended by black learners on par with their white counterparts who still make use of the prefect system. The procedure for establishing an effective structure for SRC's in secondary schools is applicable in primary schools as well. The system for the election, nomination and voting in secondary schools can be applied in primary schools as well. The functions of a prefect system that included, among others, monitoring of both educators and learners outside the school premises, have been replaced by functions that lead to the creation of an educative environment within the school. / Thesis (M.Ed.)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2005.

The purpose of this research was to investigate the structure and function of a prefect system in primary schools predominantly attended by black learners. It is the wish of learners to partake fully in school governance to bring about desirable changes within the education system. The riots that broke out in 1976, proved beyond doubt that learners no longer wished to be onlookers in the system, but to actively take part in stabilising it for their own future. In the past, learners who served in the prefect council were randomly chosen and elected by the principal and the staff. This was done in isolation of the learners in the school. Favouritism and popularity were the main features for a learner to be elected. At any given moment during the course of the year, a member of the council who did not perform according to the principles as set out by staff members, was sacked and replaced by anybody who they felt would do a better job. The democratic government that was voted for in 1996 brought about drastic changes within the education system. Unlike in the past, where learners were omitted as part of education stakeholders, the present government gives due consideration to learners' inputs and ideas. Legislative Acts such as the South African Schools Act (Act No. 84 of 1996) were passed to accommodate the needs and aspirations of learners. In terms of section 10 (3) of Act No. 84 of 1996, public schools are allowed to institute a prefect system where necessary. The latter statement urged the compilation of this research to bring primary schools predominantly attended by black learners on par with their white counterparts who still make use of the prefect system. The procedure for establishing an effective structure for SRC's in secondary schools is applicable in primary schools as well. The system for the election, nomination and voting in secondary schools can be applied in primary schools as well. The functions of a prefect system that included, among others, monitoring of both educators and learners outside the school premises, have been replaced by functions that lead to the creation of an educative environment within the school. / Thesis (M.Ed.)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2005.

Philosophiae Doctor - PhD / There is general recognition regarding the importance of English for Academic Purposes (EAP) courses in assisting students acquire academic discourses appropriate to specific disciplines of study. However, undergraduate students in multilingual contexts, where English is a second or foreign language face challenges in managing the transition from secondary school into the university, where they are expected to appropriate as well as acclimate to new discourses of communication deemed to be essential for their survival in the academic world. Although studies show the importance of agency in language learning success, institutional demands have sometimes led to the adoption of teaching and assessment practices that ignore the learners’ English language learning history, background, experiences and needs, which impact on their sense of agency and voice in the EAP classroom and eventually their learning success.

Huvudsyftet med denna undersökning har varit att undersöka och jämföra lärares och elevers uppfattningar av lärares arbete med elevinflytande i engelska A-undervisningen på gymnasiet. Det andra syftet har varit att beskriva hur den nya ämnesplanen för engelska (Gy 2011) förändrats vis-a-vis ämnesplanen och kursplanerna för engelska (Gy 2000) och vad dessa förändringar kan få för effekt på lärares fortsatta arbete med elevinflytande i engelskundervisningen. Undersökningen genomfördes med utgångspunkt i följande huvudfrågeställningar: (1) hur förhåller sig lärare respektive elever till begreppet elevinflytande samt (2) vilka förändringar återfinns i de nya styrdokumenten för engelskundervisningen i Gy 2011 och hur kan det påverka lärares arbete med elevinflytande? Metoderna som tillämpats i undersökningen har varit kvalitativa semi-strukturerade intervjuer med lärare och elever, en enkätundersökning som riktades till elever och en jämförande textanalys av ämnesplanen för engelska Gy 2011 och Gy 2000. Dessa tre metoder valdes med utgångspunkten att kunna triangulera och på så vis jämföra det insamlade datamaterialet. Analysen av datamaterialet har gjorts med koppling till styrdokument, teori och tidigare forskning med anknytning till ämnesområdet. Resultatet av undersökningen visade på att lärares och elevers uppfattningar av elevinflytande i många avseenden är lika. Både lärare och elever uppfattar att elevinflytande handlar om att påverka, vara delaktig och valmöjligheter. Vidare uppfattar lärare och elever att ett verkligt inflytande innebär att eleverna både känner och faktiskt har möjlighet att påverka undervisningen. Lärarens roll när det gäller elevinflytande i engelskundervisningen är att vara lyhörd och öppen för elevernas förslag. Elevens roll är att aktivt kunna förmedla sina förslag och synpunkter till läraren. När det gäller lärares arbete med elevinflytande i engelskundervisningen så framgick det av svaren att det till största delen är hur arbetet ska genomföras som eleverna har möjlighet att påverka medan vad arbetet ska innehålla till större delen väljs utifrån alternativ som styrs av lärarens tolkning. Textanalysen av den nya ämnesplanen (Gy 2011) visade på att styrdokumentet innehåller förändringar vad gäller struktur, kommunikation, elevperspektiv och ansvar. Under rubriken "Centralt innehåll" i kursbeskrivningarna finns ett krav som ger utrymme för ökat elevinflytande. Vissa av lärarna var dock inte säkra på att det skulle generera ett ökat elevinflytande då de menar att lärarens tolkning fortfarande är utgångspunkten. / The primary aim of this study has been to examine as well as compare teachers’ and students’ views on student influence in English teaching (English A) at upper secondary school. The secondary aim of the study focused on describing how the new English curriculum (Gy 2011) have changed vis-à-vis the previous English curriculum (Gy 2000) and what impact these changes might have on teachers approach to student influence in English teaching. The study was carried out with the following research questions in mind: (1) how does teachers and students interpret student influence and (2) what kind of changes can be found in the new English curriculum (Gy 2011) and how might these changes affect teachers’ approach to student influence? The applied methods in this study have been qualitative semi-structured interviews with teachers and students, a survey aimed at students and a comparative textual analysis of the two curricula, Gy 2011 and Gy 2000. In order to triangulate the collected data, these three methods were chosen. The data analysis is based on the two curricula, theory and previous research connected to the specific subject area. The results of the study indicated that teachers’ and students’ interpretations of student influence were in many ways similar. Teachers as well as students think of student influence as participation, being involved in the decision-making process and being able to choose between options. In addition, teachers’ and students’ definition of a veritable influence is that students both feel that they have an opportunity to shape their English education and that they actually have an opportunity to shape their English education. The role of the teacher, when it comes to student influence in English teaching, is to be perceptive and open-minded to students’ suggestions. The role of the student is to voice his or her opinions and give suggestions to the teacher. In regard to how teachers are working with student influence in their English teaching, answers from the interviews and the survey indicated that students mainly have an opportunity to influence how the classroom activity can be carried out. The content of the classroom activity is still the teacher’s prerogative. If the students are given choices, these choices have usually been framed by the teacher. The results of the textual analysis of the new English curriculum (Gy 2011) showed that changes have taken place in the new curriculum in areas such as structure, communication, student perspectives and student responsibility. A requirement in the new curriculum was found that could lead to more student influence.  However, some of the teachers were not really sure that it could generate more student influence. In this regard, they highlighted the authority of a teacher’s opinion.

The purpose of this pilot and main study was to examine teachers' perceptions of the post No Child Left Behind (NCLB) elementary classroom, the perceived changes, and the implications for teachers' feelings of empowerment and student test anxiety. Previous investigators have agreed that the teacher's voice has been missing, but needed in test anxiety research. By engaging veteran teachers who had experience both before and after the enactment of NCLB in reflective conversation about their experiences, valuable information was gained concerning whether or not teachers felt empowered to perform their duties and what impact they perceived that high stakes standardized testing has had on both teacher anxiety and student test anxiety. This information could be used to inform educational practice and decision making. Triangulation of data sources included narrative data collected through face-to-face interviews with the teachers, the writing of field notes, interview process notes, and reflective journal entries from both the pilot and main studies. Three clear themes emerged that fit the division of the data by the research questions: change in the teachers' experiences, change in teaching vocabulary, and change in the students' experiences. These themes emerged through a process of categorical-content perspective analysis for coding the data and sorting it into themes. The Hermeneutic narrative analysis approach was used to analyze and identify the meaning of these related experiences and stories. The context of the pilot and main studies was elementary schools in a rural school system in the Southeastern United States. The participants were eleven elementary teachers from grades three through five with experience before and after NCLB enactment who taught core academic subjects. Member checks of the interview transcripts and data analysis enhanced the credibility of these reports. The analysis revealed both positive and negative perceptions of the changes in the classroom experience of these elementary teachers, their feelings of empowerment, and the impact of the changes on the test anxiety of their students. Participants across the pilot and main studies indicated that increased stress, pressure, frustration, and professional struggles have had a negative impact on teacher anxiety, teacher efficacy beliefs, and student test anxiety. / Ph. D.

Philosophiae Doctor - PhD / There is general recognition regarding the importance of English for Academic Purposes (EAP) courses in assisting students acquire academic discourses appropriate to specific disciplines of study. However, undergraduate students in multilingual contexts, where English is a second or foreign language face challenges in managing the transition from secondary school into the university, where they are expected to appropriate as well as acclimate to new discourses of communication deemed to be essential for their survival in the academic world. Although studies show the importance of agency in language learning success, institutional demands have sometimes led to the adoption of teaching and assessment practices that ignore the learners’ English language learning history, background, experiences and needs, which impact on their sense of agency and voice in the EAP classroom and eventually their learning success. The study investigates whether the EAP course at the Malawi University of Science and Technology (MUST) can engender agency and voice among first year undergraduate students transitioning into the University from community day secondary schools (CDSSs). It aspires to generate an understanding of the strong link that exists between institutional orientation to EAP, course design and pedagogical practice on the one hand and learner agency, voice and multiple meaning making in the EAP classroom on the other. Anchored theoretically in critical pedagogy (Freire, 1970), ecological affordances (van Anchored theoretically in critical pedagogy (Freire, 1970), ecological affordances (van Lier, 2000, 2004) and positioning (Davies & Harré, 1999), the study argues for EAP pedagogy that provides affordances, empowers and positions transitioning students for critical learning by deliberately making multiple meaning making, agency and voice the mainstays of course design and instruction. The investigation uses a qualitative case study methodology centred on understanding affordances for agency and voice in EAP learning, manifestations of and the factors influencing voice and agency from the perspectives of first-year undergraduate students transitioning from community day secondary schools (CDSSs) and EAP course lecturers. Collection of data involved semester-long observation of 44 EAP lecture sessions of roughly 2 hours each duration, as well as interviews with participant students and course lecturers, and analysis of documents. The findings indicate that design and pedagogical practice in the current EAP course at MUST fail to adequately engender agency and voice among students and to promote learner empowerment or encourage multiple meaning making in and outside the classroom. The entire study has generated some insights for advancement of critical EAP learning that can engender voice and agency, including the need for EAP to deliberately build in and promote learner empowerment, multiple meaning making and negotiation in order to move towards pedagogy that is appropriate for critical learning, voice and agency, the need for EAP to move away from closure-focused teaching, learning and assessment, the need for enhancement of EAP course lecturers’ critical awareness of the world views and inherent assumptions surrounding various approaches to EAP pedagogy, the need for enrichment of EAP learning environments with semiotic resources for learner engagement for agency, voice and multiple meaning making, the need for learning spaces that are enabling for students to identify and utilize affordances for EAP learning beyond the classroom, and the need for exploration of PowerPoint and related technologies for EAP instruction beyond current use as tools for transmission of content to students.

This dissertation explores the efficacy of the learner autonomy (LA) principles implemented in secondary technical school EFL classes through project-based units incorporated into the conventional four-year language curriculum (2011-2015). This integrated approach remains uncommon in a Czech secondary technical school, even though it suggests a teaching model that enhances ELA and increases communicative competence and motivation among learners. A mixed-method design based on longitudinal four-cycle action research and quasi-experiment approaches was selected (1) to examine the changes in self-regulation and academic achievement development over time; (2) to investigate the efficacy of autonomous projects systematically applied within the assigned treatment group (TG), and (3) to compare the results of the treatment and control groups as to their self-regulation and academic achievement development. For the quantitative strand, a structured Self-Regulation Questionnaire (SRQ-A) and a series of academic tests were administered which were consequently analysed through null hypothesis statistical testing (NHST). The instruments employed within the quasi-experiment were focused on the following two major questions: (1) whether there was correlation between self- regulation and academic achievement...