No description available.

This study was carried out in six preparatory schools in the city of El-Fayoum in Egypt. The sample of the study comprised 230 boys and girls who were in their second year of preparatory school (middle school), and 100 teachers. The main purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between creativity and the locus of control. The research was also concerned with: (a) the relationship between creativity and intelligence; (b) the relationship between intelligence and the locus of control; (c) sex differences in both creativity and the locus of control; (d) the concept of the ideal pupil as held by the group of teachers. Creativity was measured by a creativity inventory and by the teachers' ratings of students' creative performance in Arabic and drawing. The following tests were given to the students: (1) the GIFFI I creativity inventory; (2) the Nowicki-Strickland locus of control scale; (3) the Pictorial Intelligence test. The teachers were requested to answer the following questionnaires: (1) the Ideal Pupil Check-list; (2) the creativity rating scale. The pilot study showed that these instruments were valid for use in this research. Five hypotheses were examined in the research. These were concerned with the relationships between creativity and internal locus of control, creativity and intelligence, and internal control and intelligence; and also with sex differences in creativity and locus of control, and Egyptian teachers' concept of the ideal pupil.The results confirmed the first and the fifth of these hypotheses. The other hypotheses were rejected by the data. These findings are in line with previous results relating to these areas of research. The findings of the present research are explained in the light of creative personality theory and in the light of socio-cultural factors which influence the development of creative behaviour. Finally, suggestions are made which may, it is hoped, help schools in Egypt to develop internal orientation and creativity in their pupils.

This study sets out to understand repeated procrastinating behaviours which may become detrimental to effective teaching, learning and assessment. The five case studies were conducted in a local authority primary school over a period of two years when the children were in Key Stage 1, aged five, six and seven years. The focus of this study was the possible detrimental effects of procrastinating behaviours in curriculum learning, through assigned tasks. Behaviours were observed and interviews conducted to reach a understanding of the tasks from the child’s perspective. The teacher’s perspective of the behaviours within the wide context of the assigned task was interrogated through social constructivist theories of leaming. The communicative process, by which co-participants in a task come to understand that task, was examined in light of the observed procrastinating behaviours. Within this process the influence of pupil learning identities, the use of power and questioning were particularly salient. The case studies suggest, in keeping with the author’s view, that procrastinating behaviours do have a detrimental effect on curriculum teaching, learning and assessment. It would appear that in the course of procrastinating, task objectives may be: ongoingly altered by the learners to confirm existing skills and knowledge, rejected by the learner in favour of alternative interests or progressively dfferentiated by the teacher in order to engage the learner, narrowing the opportunities for shared control of learning. It would seem that these behaviours have much to do with the active interpretation of tasks against the socio-cultural background of what passes as classroom knowledge and becomes classroom culture. It is likely that procrastinating behaviours may be reduced in conditions that allow learning to be ‘scaffolded’ in the social constructivist sense, that value discourse as a means of learning from each other and that share power and control of learning. The study proposes strategies which practitioners might find useful in identifying and reducing the incidence of procrastinating behaviours. These strategies are all concerned with the promotion of discourse in teaching, learning and assessment. They relate to task organisation and management, the construction of classroom culture and the learner’s role in approaching tasks. Through each of the strategies, the community in which the learners find themselves, has a role to play. This proposes a shift from individualism and differentiation to teaching with the goal of full participation.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1937. / Typescript. Includes abstract and vita. eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 47-48).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1976. / Typescript. Vita. eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 134-142).

No description available.

Interpreting graphically displayed data is an important life skill. This thesis examines some of the problems that 14 and 15 year olds encounter when interpreting trends in cartesian graphs. A survey of errors made by 144 pupils is discussed, which shows that two of the most difficult aspects of graph work are interpreting changes in gradients, and inter-relating the graph with its context. A detailed analysis of individual pupils interpretations of changes in gradients shows that pupils conceptions of gradient can be classified according to whether they have an 'iconic' or an 'analytical' origin. iconic descriptions are concerned with the structure, shape or position of the curve, whereas analytical descriptions are concerned with more abstract notions, such as the angle or steepness of the curve, and rate of increase. The results indicate that the occurrence of different kinds of conceptions is influenced by both the form of the graph and its context. In another study, the pupils were given two structurally isomorphic graph interpretation tasks. The results of this investigation also show that the context of a graph in relation to its structural form, has a profound influence upon the way that pupils interpret it. Interpretations are described, in which the influence of metaphors, knowledge from everyday life experience and anthropomorphic reactions can be seen. Pictorial accounts show how conceptions from some of these sources are brought into the pupils interpretations.

No description available.

In the early 1970s, Henry County, Virginia experienced rapid growth but by the late 1970s the population began to decline. In 1982, talks of building a new high school to consolidate two smaller high schools began with the school to be built on the North Carolina boarder. Between 1993 and 2003 approximately 10,523 jobs were lost in Henry County. At this time Henry County operated 20 public schools. In 2000, Dr. Sharon Dodson became the superintendent of Henry County. She was hired to make schools more efficient by using the best available spaces and closing facilities in need of structural repair. In 2001 the school board voted to close three schools but the board of supervisors refused necessary funding for consolidation. During the 2003/04 school year, the school board had no other choice but to revisit the idea of consolidation. In the fall of 2004, reconfiguration occurred which eliminated four facilities with a fifth building closing in the spring of 2008. Today, Henry County operates 14 schools. This study examined the politics associated with the consolidation process in Henry County and closure of five facilities. The literature associated with consolidation concerning divisions and schools within a division was reviewed to provide context and better understanding of the consolidation process. Historical case study methods where employed to conduct the study. Data were collected from primary sources and interviews were handled qualitatively. Triangulation verification techniques were used to describe and verify consolidation events in Henry County. The findings express the issues and challenges faced and met by Henry County during consolidation. The events that led to school closings and some course offerings and programs are described. The findings indicate that consolidation can be successful even when some stakeholders reject the idea and plan of consolidation. Continued research in the field of consolidation could possibly benefit educational and community leaders considering reconfiguration within a school division. Additional research comparing the cost of operating a division before and after consolidation of schools may provide insights that educational and community members should consider before embarking on consolidation. / Ed. D.

A child’s right to have their opinion in decisions which affect them given due regard forms the basis of Article 12 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) (1989) which was ratified by the UK government in 1991. The term ‘pupil voice’ has been used by schools as a way of encapsulating this and a survey in 2007 suggested that 92% of primary schools in England and Wales had a school council in place (Whitty & Wisby, 2007a). The aim of the current study was to elicit the views of key stage 2 school councillors and staff members about the role of school councils and pupil participation in decision making. In Phase One staff from three primary schools in the south west of England were interviewed about school councils and pupil participation in school. Data were analysed using thematic analysis and three themes emerged. In Phase Two 16 key stage 2 pupils, who were members of their own school’s school council, took part. Mixed gender paired interviews were conducted to elicit their views about their role and pupil participation in decision making in their school. Interviews were followed by five weekly group sessions involving participatory activities to support and develop their understanding of their role as school councillors. Pupils from each school council had input into the topics explored in this part of the research. Findings from Phase One suggest that staff regard school councils as being positive for the children involved but they differ in opinion in terms of the impact they have on the wider school population. Findings from Phase Two suggest school council members value being responded to by adults when they have been asked to express their views about a specific decision. School council members also perceive trust as being one of the main factors involved in their election by peers. Findings are discussed in relation to recent research about participation in decision making, the effectiveness of school councils and the importance of a participatory ethos within schools. Overall findings lead to the proposal of a model for use in schools to support the participation of pupils in decision making. The model is based on the existing model conceptualising Article 12 of the UNCRC by Lundy (2007) but incorporates a shared participatory ethos and adult response as required factors. Limitations of the current study as well as suggestions for future research and implications for EP practice are discussed.