This thesis focuses on an investigation which aimed to explore how teachers interpret their roles and construct their professional identities in relation to school improvement and how they can be supported in their contributions in this respect. The initial research questions were set within a conceptual framework linking teacher professionalism and school improvement, in particular the symbiotic and reciprocal relationships between individuals and organisations which were illuminated by the concepts of agency and structuration. Research aims, questions and conceptual development were reflexively and iteratively modified, to encompass the significance of school context in influencing professional identity and agency and to explore intractable dilemmas arising in interpreting external and internal policy requirements in relation to personal values. The implications of narrative enquiry for validity were acknowledged, focusing on distilling the ‘essence’ of situated professional selves and identities through portraiture to explore these substantive themes. The professional values, priorities and aspirations of six teachers were investigated through semi-structured interviews incorporating elicitation tools, and presented as a form of nested case study where individual portraits were set within the organisational landscapes of their two contrasting schools, based on evidence representing a range of perspectives. This involved navigating the methodological territory between narratives and portraits. Analysis is presented as an ‘exhibition’, with three ‘galleries’ exploring different themes emerging from the empirical evidence. This enabled comparisons to be made between the stance that teachers choose to take in relation to internally or externally driven change and their own motivations, aspirations and actions to achieve outcomes according with their personal values and concerns. The research contributes new understandings in relation to how, within ‘imposed’, ‘selected’ and ‘constructed’ organisational environments (Bandura, 2001), teachers’ professional identities are, to a greater or lesser extent, imposed or constructed. This in turn affects their agency in influencing their professional environments aligned with their personal professional values and aspirations. The empirical evidence therefore shows the significance of organisational cultures, leadership and individual agency, in influencing how professional environments and identities are constructed or imposed. A new model is derived from the empirical evidence and parallel conceptual development, contrasting complementary epistemological, ontological and agentic perspectives for schooling. This provides a framework for developing professional identity and professionality, in which individual agency is considered a vital dimension. Since teachers have a predominantly narrative understanding of reality, it is argued that narrative and visual approaches are key to such school improvement work. Making the agentic perspective visible and developmental supports key components of agency - intentionality, forethought, self-reactiveness and self-reflectiveness (ibid.). The resulting levels of engagement give grounds for optimism in supporting teachers’ more powerful individual and collective agency, including working critically and strategically with systemic reform, contributing proactively to local initiatives for change and pursuing personal change agendas.

This research investigated the ways in which Management Information Systems (MIS) support learning in FE colleges, based on an analysis of data deriving from respondents in three colleges. The study has adopted Weick’s (1995) theory of Interpretive Sensemaking (SM) as an underpinning theory to explore teacher and managerial responses to discourses of using data to inform decisions. The study is qualitative in nature and uses interviews, documents, and participant observation data, to understand and explain social phenomena. A case study methodology is used in this study as it provides an opportunity for in depth analysis of the role of MIS using various sources and methods of investigation. Two methods of data collection are used. The first data collection method used in this study is documentary collation and analysis. The document sources include sets of policy and procedure texts. The documentary analysis also includes the internal reports generated by MIS software or provided by MIS staff on schedule. The second method of data collection employed in the study is interviews. The interviews data collected are from one to one semi structured interviews and focus groups. In total 60 members of staff were interviewed from which 20 participants were interviewed in focus groups. The study suggests that the main providers of data come from MIS services in colleges. MIS provide tools to make the data available for practitioners to use on a daily basis to support learning. The study suggests that there are some barriers which do not help practitioners to use the data effectively in order to improve learning in FE colleges. This study reveals a number of recommendations for FE colleges to embrace to improve the use of data in decision making and learning: easy access to data, data integration, good communication, professional development, collaboration, motivation to use data, available support in place, purpose to use data, data quality, useful and user friendly software tools, and ownership of data. Additionally two original frameworks have been evolved, a framework for effective MIS in FE colleges and a framework for steps to improve the effective use of data in support of education and learning. Both frameworks can be adopted and implemented easily in FE colleges and can enable educators to support learning and monitor success and achievements effectively.

Play is widely recognized as a natural ability and fundamental right of children. In educational settings, the idea of integrating play into early childhood education to promote children’s learning and development has been continually advocated by researchers, policy-makers and practitioners. However, as play is a culturally situated concept, it may be understood differently by teachers within different social and cultural contexts in terms of its function and value to children’s development and its relation with learning. Moreover, Chinese educational reform underlines play-based pedagogy in early childhood education. This raise questions about how play is interpreted by Chinese early childhood teachers as a vehicle for early learning and motivate the current study to locate play in a Chinese context to explore kindergarten teachers’ understanding and execution of play in practice. A qualitative design with in-depth, open-ended interviews, persistent classroom observation, and documentary review was employed. Twenty-four early childhood education practitioners, including three administrators, three interest class teachers and eighteen teachers, two from each of nine classes in three different Chinese kindergartens were interviewed and the interactions between the teachers and individual children were video-recorded during playtime. A number of relevant official policy documents, regulations and kindergarten curriculum plans were collected to offer context for the research. Data was analyzed by adopting content analysis and constant comparison. The findings show that the teachers construct a notion of ‘eduplay’ in the kindergarten educational settings, which emphasizes more on the instrumental value than the intrinsic value of play. A combination of a cultural transmission/direct approach and an emergent/responsive approach is revealed in their practice. The teachers adopt diverse roles in play. Although didactic features are evident in teachers’ role in play, the teachers show strong desire to play a ‘whole teacher’ role and establish a parallel relationship with children. They share a similar view that teachers’ active involvement can contribute to children’s learning in play and they are more likely to exert their influence on children’s play through direct intervention than play provision. Moreover, the findings reveal that the teacher-child interactions in play in this study are less likely to scaffold children’s learning. There seems to be a tension between teachers’ concerns of safety and children’s intense involvement in play. Three main influences, including the influences from the cultural context, the influences from the institutional context, and the influences from the teachers’ personal context were identified affecting the implementation of play in kindergarten practice.

No description available.

Background: Emotional and behavioural problem in children and adolescence is an important public health issues. However, there is currently limited epidemiological evidence in terms of its prevalence or stability over time in Malaysia, and limited evidence about the role of parenting programmes in supporting parents and children experiencing such problems. Methods: This research comprises a longitudinal community-based study that measured the prevalence of emotional and behavioural problems among school children aged seven to eight years and thirteen to fourteen years in Malaysia, and assessed their stability at six months. The study also consisted of an evaluation of a parenting programme known as the Khalifah method in which the parents of a group of children aged seven to eight years who had been screened in the prevalence study as having emotional and behavioural problems, were invited to take part in the programme. Parents, teachers and children aged 13 to 14 were assessed at baseline and 6 months time using the SDQ, which was also validated in the Malay Language, as part of the current study. Results: The prevalence of emotional and behavioural problems in Malaysian school children was 9.3% for teacher-report, 8.5% for parent-report, and 3.9% for child-report. There was no significance difference in the prevalence of emotional and behavioural problems over a six-month period, except for Teacher-report emotional (p=0.006) and conduct problems scores (p=0.000) as well as child-report Total Difficulties scores (p=0.000) and emotional problems scores (p=0.002). Four variables were significant predictors of EBD at time 2 – being male, younger, from a low-income family and having externalizing behaviour problems at time 1. Finally the results of the pilot evaluation of the effectiveness of a Parenting Programme suggests that it was effective in reducing behaviour problems among children whose parent’s received the intervention after 6 months (p=0.001), as well increasing parent’s mental well-being (p=0.000). Conclusion: This study shows that the prevalence of EBD among Malaysian children is similar to western countries, and is stable over a 6-month period. It also provides preliminary evidence to suggest that a parenting programme is effective in reducing conduct problems among affected children.

This dissertation has been submitted in fulfilment of the requirements of the University of Glasgow EdD. As someone with a professional background in education, government and parliament, and an academic background in politics and citizenship, I was keen to identify an area of study that might draw upon these areas of interest. The emergence of A Curriculum for Excellence as a major new policy initiative in the mid-2000s appeared to represent an ideal case study scenario for just such a study. I wished to examine the ways in which this policy had been initiated, formulated, developed and implemented. In particular I was very aware of the optimistic and aspirational claims around new and improved modes of policymaking that had contributed to the discourse around devolution in the late 1990s. I wanted to test these claims in the light of the development of A Curriculum for Excellence. In order to address these claims I developed a conceptual framework that placed a strong emphasis on themes of genealogy and governance. Through this framework, and a methodology based on literature review and in depth interviews with some key participants in the policy process, I hoped to scrutinise some aspects of the Scottish policy process that are rarely examined. These include the influential role of individuals and organisations, the ways in which policy is mediated in an apparent pursuit of consensus and the consequences of this approach to policy. My core research questions were: 1. To what extent was the genealogy of A Curriculum for Excellence influenced and shaped by the post-devolutionary context? 2. Does an analysis of the governance of A Curriculum for Excellence provide evidence of a change in post-devolution policymaking in education? 3. What does the educational policymaking architecture look like in post-devolution Scotland? In answering these questions I identified a number of key findings, including that the Curriculum for Excellence (CfE) development can be situated in a policy context that has been informed by the advent of devolution. It provides partial evidence of a change in the post devolution conduct of education policy, although some procedures for policy consultation should be reviewed and enhanced further, with a greater focus on deliberative forms of engagement at all stages in the policy process. Policy goals should be stated more clearly and in ways that can facilitate review and evaluation. Procedures should also be put in place to promote greater continuity of staff and institutions involved in the core development and delivery of major policy initiatives in Scottish education. The policy architecture that has emerged in the post-devolution period is a hybrid model that has not resolved the longstanding tension between consensual, pluralistic and mediating instincts on the one hand; and centralised control and governance on the other. The informal and organic system of checks and balances in the Scottish policy landscape that had evolved in the pre-devolutionary era has to a large extent been retained. This has implications for the scope, speed and ambition of any policy development and implementation, as exemplified by CfE in this case study. In order to improve the prospects for effective policy change in future, I recommend that the roles of the different organisations with responsibility for educational policymaking in Scotland should be reviewed and clarified. Furthermore the procedures for policymaking should be clarified, formalised and made more transparent in the same way as legislative procedures were reviewed as part of the devolution settlement.

To investigate the ways in which communities of practice affect individuals' identity development, qualitative research methods were used to understand the impact solo travel had on American women's identity development. A theoretical framework developed from the disciplines of tourism, feminism and adult education was used to inform the study. Using a combined method methods approach (naturalistic inquiry and grounded theory), three components of the backpacker community of practice were identified which gave rise to a model of identity development within a particular community. This study has implications for adult education theory as it clearly suggests the interrelatedness of the social context in which this learning takes place (communities of practice), and adult development theory (identity formation). In practical terms it illustrates and also challenges the notion of identity change as irreversible, suggesting learners need constant support to retain new ways of viewing the world and themselves.

Understanding human long bone anatomy is an important concept to master for post-secondary students that major in medical fields since skeletal structures assist in locating a pulse, conducting clinical procedures, and identifying injection sites. Skeletal anatomy is also used to name structures associated with other organ systems like veins, arteries, and nerves. This explanatory mixed methods study explores post-secondary students knowledge retention and perception of various constructivist activities that utilize historical approaches based on the works of Vesalius, the Father of Modern Anatomy to teach long bone anatomy. Three treatment groups and one controlled comparison group (n= 92) were provided an online demographic survey, pre and posttests the day of the experimental lesson, a questionnaire regarding enjoyment and utilization of the activity, and two additional posttests given four and twelve weeks after the activity to gather knowledge retention data. Thirteen participants who fell within the quantitative tails of the first posttest assessment were interviewed regarding the activity. Coded interviews, field notes, observations and quantitative data were used for meta-inference. The data suggests that the osteology activities that incorporate historical and constructivist aspects increased students enjoyment, knowledge retention, and self-directed learning outside the classroom. The group that utilized multiple learning modalities through drawing and creating mental maps with blindfolds showed a positive significant difference (p < 0.05) among other treatments with respect to knowledge retention twelve weeks after the activity. Meta-inference of data suggests the utilization of constructivist activities that cater to several learning modalities will facilitate partner interaction, increase laboratory enjoyment, provide students with additional study techniques, and enhance knowledge retention the day of the activity and twelve weeks after the activity. This study fills a gap in the literature in which the incorporation of constructivist activities designed using historicality of cognition, active and meaningful learning have not been explored with regards to knowledge retention within an osteology laboratory setting. Additionally, this study could be used across disciplines and will be beneficial to educators, scientists, medical students and undergraduate students.

Many scholars of gifted education have often argued and believed that gifted individuals are neurologically overexcitable while non-gifted persons are not (Chang & Kuo, 2013; Harrison & Haneghan, 2011; Piechowski, 1979, 2006; Silverman, 2000a; Siu, 2010; Tieso, 2007a). This means that gifted persons are more sensitive, intuitive, empathic, and physically and emotionally aware. Some scholars have suggested that this significant degree of overexcitability may even mean that gifted persons are morally superior to non-gifted persons (Silverman, 1994). Over the past thirty years, this relationship between overexcitability (OE) and giftedness has become increasingly popular, as many websites, textbooks, and researchers have asserted it as true. These resources have also advocated a particular treatment and understanding of gifted persons due to their overexcitable nature. Recently, however, some scholars have questioned the validity of the giftedness-overexcitability relationship (Mendaglio, 2002; Pyrt, 2008; Tillier, 2009a). So, while the past thirty years have seen a rise in the perception that gifted persons are overexcitable (Silverman, 2008), these scholars have contended that there is actually little empirical data demonstrating this relationship (Mendaglio; Pyrt; Tillier). Using a systematic review of studies that compared gifted and non-gifted samples OE scores, this dissertation attempted to provide some clarity to this burgeoning debate. This process involved a research synthesis that used a priori established criteria to identify, describe, and evaluate the findings and methodologies of a body of literatures most rigorously conducted studies (Petticrew, 2001). The evaluation phase of the systematic review included both qualitative and quantitative techniques. These findings revealed that it is unclear that gifted individuals are significantly more overexcitable than non-gifted individuals. Consequently, researchers, practitioners, and gifted persons themselves should reconsider the relationship between giftedness and overexcitability.

Developmental education and the surrounding issues of academically underprepared students have been an ongoing source of debate within American higher education. While secondary education systems are frequently blamed for failing to adequately prepare students, community colleges, state colleges, and universities offer developmental programs to aid students in need of remediation in the form of developmental courses. Reading, Math, and English are subjects that are often taught on a developmental level. These courses are designed to provide students with the basic skills needed to be successful in higher education. This research was designed to examine students perception of the effectiveness of developmental education programs in a community college setting in Louisiana. The data was collected through a qualitative study using student surveys and interviews. For this study, effectiveness was defined in two ways: in evaluating students perception of whether the developmental courses taken address their deficiencies in each developmental course subject and through comparison of components of developmental programs to established indicators that facilitate developmental program success. Theoretical framework for the study drew on Baxter Magoldas Epistemological Reflection Model. This study contributes to the discussion of effective developmental education pedagogy and the development of programs that enhance underprepared students transitional development into a postsecondary educational setting.