Orientador: Prof. Dr. Sérgio Henrique Bezerra de Sousa Leal / Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Federal do ABC, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ensino, História, Filosofia das Ciências e Matemática, Santo André, 2018. / A Escola Preparatória da UFABC (EPUFABC) é um projeto de extensão dirigido às comunidades com menor acesso à educação, com o propósito de promover maior oportunidade de ingresso ao ensino superior. As aulas da EPUFABC são ministradas por alunos da graduação e pós-graduação da Universidade Federal do ABC, que muitas vezes só têm a visão do que é ser professor vivenciada em suas experiências como aluno. Nesse contexto, e utilizando o Conhecimento Pedagógico do Conteúdo (PCK) como referencial teórico, este trabalho investigou os indícios do PCK para o conteúdo de isomeria de dois professores de química da EPUFABC. Como ferramenta de acesso desse conhecimento foi utilizado o preenchimento do instrumento Representação de Conteúdo (CoRe), realizadas entrevistas semiestruturadas com os professores e o registro audiovisual das aulas ministradas para o conteúdo anteriormente mencionado. Os dados obtidos foram transcritos e analisados segundo as categorias do PCK propostas por Magnusson et al. (1999) e Adadan e Oner (2014). Dessa forma, foi possível compreender como professores com formações iniciais distintas e ministrando o mesmo conteúdo mobilizam o seu PCK, bem como verificar o grau de desenvolvimento do mesmo. Identificou-se nos registros as diferentes categorias do PCK e como a formação de cada professor, aliada à sua prática influenciam na contrução dos diferentes conhecimentos que constituem o PCK. / The UFABC Preparatory School (EPUFABC) is an extension project aimed at communities with less access to education, with the purpose of promoting greater opportunities for higher education. EPUFABC classes are taught by undergraduate and graduate students of the Federal University of ABC, who often only have the vision of what it is to be a teacher experienced in their experiences as a student. In this context, and using the Pedagogical Knowledge of Content (PCK) as a theoretical reference, this work investigated the evidence of the PCK for the isomer content of two chemistry professors of EPUFABC. As a tool to access this knowledge was used the filling of the Instrument of Content Representation (CoRe), conducted semi-structured interviews with the teachers and the audiovisual record of the classes taught for the content mentioned above. The data obtained were transcribed and analyzed according to the PCK categories proposed by Magnusson et al. (1999) and Adadan and Oner (2014). In this way, it was possible to understand how teachers with different initial training and ministering the same content mobilize their PCK, as well as verify the degree of development of the same. The different categories of the PCK were identified in the registers and how the formation of each teacher, together with their practice, influence the construction of different knowledge that constitute the PCK.

This study explored the link between teachers’ inputs and process and students’ academic achievement in Junior Secondary Certificate (JSC) Mathematics for the period 2006 to 2010.The outcome (teacher effectiveness) was obtained by means of value added measures (students’ aggregate JSC Mathematics scores for 2006 to 2010 by school). One hundred and fifty JSC schools out of a total of 573 constituted the units of analysis for the study. The data regarding teachers were obtained by means of self-administered questionnaires, and JSC Mathematics results from 2006 to 2010 were obtained from the Directorate of National Examinations and Assessment (DNEA). Multi-correlation and regression techniques at alpha =0.001; 0.05 and 0.10 were used to analyse the link between teachers’ inputs and processes, and students’ academic achievement in JSC Mathematics. The null hypotheses formulated for the study were tested at the 0.05 (5%) level of significance. In summary, it appears that the various aspects of teachers’ inputs (teachers’ educational qualifications, teaching experience, subject specialisation etc.), processes (standards-based professional development, standards-based classroom activities, and classroom management beliefs) are related to students’ academic achievement in JSC Mathematics. In particular, a linear combination of the following variables had a significant and positive association with students’ academic achievement in JSC Mathematics: teachers’ major in Mathematics (teachers’ inputs); teachers’ usage of whole class discussion (standards-based classroom activities); perceived knowledge of algebra; teachers’ professional development in interdisciplinary instruction; teachers’ review of students’ homework/assignments; and students talking to other students about how to solve mathematics problems. Teachers’ pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) in general, and some classroom practices were not significantly related to students’ academic achievements. This study, therefore, recommends that teachers’ professional development should focus on the subject matter that the teachers will be teaching, as well as alignment of teachers’ learning opportunities with real work experience using actual curriculum materials and assessment. / Educational Studies / D. Ed. (Didactics)

Philosophiae Doctor - PhD / Libya, as one of the third world countries, is struggling to address the issue of transformation and various institutional reforms (including the education system). For example, it has been observed that many biology teachers are faced with challenges relating to both subject matter knowledge (SMK) and pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) yet the expectation of the new curriculum is that biology teachers demonstrate professional efficacy in their work regardless of the challenges they face. In light of this, a group of Libyan secondary school biology teachers was investigated in Tripoli through a participatory action research process. The study was underpinned by the Shulman theory of PCK using a mixed-methods design to generate an understanding of the theory of basic knowledge of teaching. This investigation examined the influence of an in-service training programme consisting of three components of PCK namely: teachers‘ subject matter knowledge (SMK); use of instructional strategies; and understanding of learners on a group of Libyan biology teachers‘ instructional practices. On the one hand, the investigation considered their theoretical knowledge, and their experiences during the professional development programme aimed at designing new teaching and learning activities and materials while on the other hand, it considered their practical knowledge in terms of their professional skills or their practical use of what has been learned during their pre-service training as well as what they learned during the professional development programme. Specifically, the study focused on biology teachers from the Hai Alandalus District (Libya). This representation enabled me to unveil the PCK components held to some extent by the Libyan teachers in general. Moreover, the PCK representation has also enabled me to clarify the category of the teachers‘ PCK in the Libyan context especially as their PCK was unknown at the commencement of the study. The findings have shown that the professional development used in the study facilitated the biology teachers‘ ability in several ways such as increased their PCK and SMK; improved their ability to organize activity-based lessons; increased their desire to use a variety of instructional strategies; increased the understanding of their learners‘ needs; improved their awareness that their learners‘ performance is not unrelated to their socio-economic background; and so on. Overall, the findings suggest that designing and implementing new teaching and learning activities and materials based on the teachers‘ knowledge, experiences, and needs, in a workshop context could provide an enabling learning environment for them as well as facilitate their potential to provide a powerful means for increasing their PCK, SMK and understanding their learners. The study also reveals that there is a great necessity for designers to mount professional development programmes that take into consideration the teachers‘ PCK to meaningfully promote their professional development and instructional practices.

Uppdraget som låg till grund för detta examensarbete var att utveckla Vattenfall Science Centers utställning och verksamhet. Uppdraget formulerades i ett syfte att studera hur sciencecentret som koncept kan utvecklas genom att pröva hur ett sociokulturellt perspektiv pålärande yttrar sig i skapandet av en interaktiv installation. Målet med arbetet är att föreslå hurett science center kan formas och utvecklas för att skapa förutsättningar för lärande.Arbetet delades upp i tre delar. Första delen består av en studie av litteratur med syfteatt få en övergripande bild av den forskning som berör lärande på museer. Målet var att belysaviktiga aspekter för lärande på museer. Andra delen består av arbetet med att formulera endidaktisk modell som svarar för vad, varför och hur ett ämne eller ämnesområde skapresenteras, samt att tillämpa den didaktiska modellen i skapandet av en interaktivinstallation. Tredje delen av arbetet består av en utvärdering av mötet mellan den skapadeinstallationen och dess användare.I denna rapport presenteras arbetets tre delar för att avslutningsvis leda till endiskussion kring examensarbetets huvudfråga: Hur kan förutsättningar för lärande möjliggörasi utformandet av en interaktiv utställning?Att skapa förutsättningar för lärande handlar om att skapa förutsättningar föraktiviteter som möjliggör lärande. Genom utformning och val av innehåll i en utställningfinns möjlighet att skapa mer eller mindre goda förutsättning för lärande. Därför är det viktigtatt från början ha en klar bild av vilken typ av aktivitet som det är önskvärt att utställningeninbjuder besökaren till, exempelvis samarbete, samtal och besökarens egen påverkan.Det traditionella science centret är ofta kritiserat för att framställa naturvetenskap ochteknik som något färdigt och opåverkbart. För att skapa intresse och engagemang för dessaämnen och för områdena energi och miljö betonas från flera håll vikten av att iställetframställa dem nyanserat och från flera perspektiv. Därför är det viktigt att i arbetet med attutveckla en interaktiv utställning eller en science center verksamhet diskutera hur det tänktaämnet ska presenteras för att uppnå detta.Att skapa och utveckla en utställning och en verksamhet är en arbetsprocess sominvolverar många människor. Här liksom i alla situationer där många människor ärinvolverade i ett och samma projekt behövs en tydlig ambition och tydliga mål medverksamheten som kan styra och leda arbetsprocessens alla delar. I arbetet har det betonats attdenna ambition kan utvecklas från att intressera besökaren för naturvetenskap och teknik, idetta fall med fokus på energi- och miljöfrågor, till att också skapa engagemang. Engagemangsom exempelvis kan skapas genom att erbjuda besökaren verktyg för att själv kunna agera ochpåverka framtiden i relation energi- och miljöfrågor. / This study illuminates how the science center as a concept can be developed and how asociocultural perspective on learning influences the design of an interactive exhibit. The aimof the study is to propose ideas on how a science center can be designed and developed withthe purpose of creating good conditions for learning.The work was divided in three parts. In the first part literature was studied with theaim of highlighting aspects important for learning from a sociocultural perspective. In thesecond part an educational model was formulated based on the result from the literature study,interviews and study visits. The educational model was then used to guide the design of aninteractive exhibit on hydro power. The third part consists of an evaluation of the exhibitbased on observation of the visitors’ interaction with the exhibit.In this thesis the work and the result of the three parts are presented leading to a finaldiscussion about the key question of the study: How can learning possibilities be createdthrough the design of an interactive exhibition?Creating possibilities for learning is about creating possibilities for activities thatmakes learning possible. Through the design and in the choice of content of an exhibition it ispossible to create more or less good conditions for learning. Therefore it is important to havea clear picture of what type of activities it is desirable that an exhibition invite the visitor to,for example cooperation and conversation and the visitors’ possibility to influence the resultof the activity.The traditional science center is often criticized for presenting science and technologyas something static and finished. To create interest and engagement for the subject area it isinstead needed to be presented from a wide range of perspectives. Therefore throughout thework of developing an interactive exhibition or a science center it is important to discuss howthe subject area can be presented to fulfil this aim.Creating and developing an exhibition is a work that involves a number of people withdifferent backgrounds, knowledge and ideas. Just as in any other project that involves manypeople a clear ambition with clear goals is needed and makes a shared vision possible that canlead and steer all parts of the work.

Several misconceptions show up when learners answer questions on Chemical Equilibrium during examinations. Literature from other researchers shows similar trend of misconceptions (Johnstone, 2000; Morais, Paiva and Barros, 2007; Adesoji and Babatunde, 2008) for example, ‘apply pressure to the reactants’ (Johnstone, 2000). This shows that Chemistry has no meaning to these learners and they end up with misconceptions as they try to memorise facts in order to pass examinations. Learners are taught before writing these examinations, but how are they taught the concepts of Chemical Equilibrium? A descriptive approach was used on an exploratory survey conducted in Thohoyandou Cluster among Physical Science (Chemistry) FET band Educators. Cluster sampling of 40 educators from 18 randomly sampled schools responded to questionnaires. Five ‘well experienced’ educators who have been producing ‘good’ results at Grade 12 NSC examinations and two Physical Sciences subject advisors were interviewed. Using Spearman Brown Split-Half statistical method a 0,891 reliability coefficient was obtained. Research results show lack or under utilisation of laboratory equipment, teaching strategies which promote rote learning. Lack of confidence of educators due to deficiency in topic content knowledge and pedagogical skills which promote conceptual understanding were identified. Problem of English language leading to communication breakdown between educator-learners and between learner-subject leading to emergency of knowledge gaps in learners. Educators consider professional development through re-training and workshops on subject content matter and teaching strategies as the way forward to improve the quality of teaching. Topic specific PCK focusing on problem-solving strategy was recommended as a means to increasing educators’ efficiency in teaching and enhance learners’ comprehension and achievement in Physical Science. / Science and Technology Education / M. Sc. (Mathematics, Science and Technology Education (Chemistry Education))

In this paper the notion of “mathematics profiles” and “instructional behaviour profiles is introduced. A brief explanation of what these profiles are and how they were constructed and represented for preservice mathematics teachers is provided. An example of one of the participants’ profiles is included as an example. The influence of the pre-service teachers’ mathematics profiles on their instructional behaviour is then discussed. This is done with regard to using the mathematics profiles as a potential tool to optimise the development of pre-service mathematics teachers’ instructional behaviour towards a more reform-oriented approach.

The study developed and designed a pedagogical content knowledge framework to guide and support the professional development of pedagogical content knowledge to about 130 statistics teachers. It captured the experiences of teachers during the development of pedagogical content knowledge, to come up with the main themes that describe pedagogical content knowledge as the relevant knowledge for teaching Grade 11 and 12 statistics. The study was overall qualitative in nature and supported by some quantitative data. Questionnaires, in-class facilitated tasks/activities, in-class facilitated discussions and observations were used as the main data collection instruments. This process revealed some significant themes, described as “missed opportunities”, which were defined as incidents in which pedagogical content knowledge was needed but not used. The thesis contributes to the theoretical and knowledge base of secondary school statistics teachers in the education system by providing measures that can be used to determine professional development needs of teachers. / Mathematics Education / D. Ed. (Mathematics Education)

A Five-pillar conceptual framework -good social environment, focused instruction, well-trained and regularly supervised teachers, family background and language of learning and teaching- is used in this dissertation as a theoretical construct through which to make sense of persistent learner performance disparities between former white and former black schools in the South African public education system. This is a largely qualitative research project which employs a case study approach within a study area comprised of four purposive sample schools. The study is exploratory in nature in that it seeks to investigate why former white schools continue to perform better than former black schools despite massive educational changes made since 1994. I argue in this dissertation that teaching and learning processes between former white and former black schools are still fraught with huge inequalities, hence learner performance disparities. In other words, despite the investment, inputs and strategies since 1994, the education system in historically black schools is not working largely because of issues of classroom practice. A multi-method approach for data collection purposes was used in this study: testing, interviews, observations, intensive literature review and documentary analysis. Learner focus groups, maths teachers, teacher union representatives and school principals formed the backbone of research respondents in this project. The results show immense and unrelenting prevalence of inequalities and variations between former white and former black schools in terms of almost all aspects of teaching and learning processes. The essence of the results is that for the South African education system to achieve equitable learner performance across all schools, it must first achieve equity in terms of teaching and learning processes and needs.

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