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Because no government body has mandated a national or state curriculum for music education in the United States, elementary general music teachers can vary widely in their curricular choices about whether and how to include movement. To contribute to an understanding of children’s experiences engaging in movement during their elementary music education, the purpose of this research was to examine influencers on pre-Kindergarten through 8th grade general music teachers’ choices to use movement in elementary general music classes. With a pragmatic worldview, I approached the study through a lens of embodied teaching and learning, acknowledging a person’s bodily movements as connected ways of musical knowing. I used a mixed methods, explanatory sequential design in two phases of the research. In Phase I, I posed four research questions. Research questions one through three: For two types of movement (i.e., non-locomotor, locomotor), to what extent does variance in (a) school socioeconomic status (i.e., Title I, Non-Title I), (b) physical classroom space, and (c) class size significantly relate to the use of movement by type in elementary general music classes? Research question four: (d) To what extent do school socioeconomic status, physical classroom space, and class size in combination explain the variance in the use of movement in elementary general music classes? In Phase II, I posed four additional research questions to explain the results of Phase I. Research questions five through seven: How do music teachers describe the (e) purpose, (f) benefits, and (g) challenges in their use of different movement types in elementary general music classes? Research question eight: (h) What results emerge from comparing the quantitative data on influencers to the use of movement by type with the qualitative data that describes teachers’ choices in movement instruction? For that question, I examined the results from Phase I and Phase II to complete the mixed methods design of this study. In Phase I, pre-Kindergarten through 8th grade general music teachers (N = 251) teaching in the United States voluntarily completed a researcher-designed web-based survey. For research questions one through three, I conducted independent t-tests on the survey data for each of the related variables. For research question one, participants in Title I schools (n = 163) used non-locomotor steady beat gestures (t = 1.99) and locomotor choreography (t = 2.37) statistically significantly more than participants in non-Title I schools (n = 88). For research question two, participants without a dedicated physical music classroom space (n = 30) used non-locomotor movement for showing pitch relations and melodic contour with hands (t = 2.21) statistically significantly more than participants with a dedicated music classroom (n = 221). Participants with a dedicated music classroom (n = 221) used locomotor choreography (t = 3.87) statistically significantly more than participants without dedicated music classroom (n = 30). For research question three, participants with large class sizes (n = 107) used non-locomotor dramatizing (p = -.132) and locomotor creative/exploratory movement (p = -.198) statistically significantly more than participants with medium (n = 108) or small (n = 36) class sizes. For research question four, I conducted a multiple regression on the survey data to examine the influence of school socioeconomic status, physical space, and class size on use of movement by type. Results indicated one statistically significant correlation for the variables in combination: participants in Title I schools with dedicated music rooms statistically significantly used non-locomotor moving with flow (t = 2.303). In Phase II, I purposefully sampled 17 of 106 interested Phase I survey participants based on their responses to demographic information in relation to five conditions established a priori: Self-Reported Frequency of Movement Use, School Socioeconomic Status, Class Size, Physical Classroom Space, and Professional Development Experience. To answer research questions five through seven, I conducted a thematic analysis of those 17 Phase II participants’ transcribed and member-checked individual, semi-structured interviews. From their interview data, I identified 31 representative meaning units, 10 lower order themes, and four higher order themes (i.e., Who I Am, Who My Students Are, Where We Are Together, and What We Do Together). For research question eight, I compared the quantitative data on influencers to the use of movement by type with qualitative data that describes participants’ choices in type of movement. Participants’ choices to use locomotor movement were constrained by their physical classroom space and large class sizes but not by school socioeconomic status. Teachers’ choices to use movement in general music settings are also influenced by teacher identity and body image. Since participants volunteered for this study, results need to be applied with caution. By examining the results of Phase I and Phase II, I concluded that teachers in this study connected their choices of whether and how to use movement in elementary general music to their own identity, understandings of students’ identities, school context, and students’ musical engagement. Teachers desire students’ engaging movement experiences that lead to students’ empowerment through embodied learning. Teachers’ choices to use movement potentially connect teachers’ and students’ embodied experiences with teachers’ personally formational instruction, regardless of their school socioeconomic status, physical classroom space, or class size. Implications for the field of music education include widening our understanding of the role of identity at various junctures of a music teacher’s career. Because administrators assign physical teaching spaces and determine maximum class sizes, they play an important role ensuring general music teachers can teach in a dedicated space that is physically and socioemotionally safe for students and their teacher. By contemplating ways to engage in personal movement experiences beyond their practice in their classrooms, teachers may boost their self-confidence, and expand possibilities for using movement instruction in less-than-ideal teaching spaces. Future researchers might investigate the (a) role music-teacher body image plays as it influences teachers’ choices to use movement, (b) ways teachers connect students’ dance cultures to music learning, (c) use of movement in remote, cyber, or virtual general music classes. Depending on the status of the COVID-19 pandemic, future researchers may explore general music teachers’ choices to use movement relative to social distancing practices. / Music Education

This integrated methods study used a sequential explanatory design to explore the culturally relevant teaching beliefs of successful emergent literacy Head Start teachers of urban African American boys living in poverty. The study utilized emergent literacy gain scores as a measure of success, a survey of culturally relevant teaching beliefs to describe variation in beliefs within the sample, and two rounds of interviews to explore the context of teacher agency with urban African American boys living in poverty. The four teachers interviewed expressed culturally relevant beliefs integral to their teaching practices. These beliefs were conveyed through descriptions of relationships with parents in and out of the classroom, through of the conditions and challenges of poverty in students' and parents' lives, and through close relationships with parents. The effect of conducting home visits on teachers' identities and the influence of the setting of Head Start on teachers' beliefs and agency were emergent themes in the interviews. The participants used language that seemed to indicate culturally relevant and warm demander approaches to understanding the relationship between student behavior and student engagement and in descriptions of the relationships with parents. The value of teachers' relationships with their students' parents was the most pronounced aspect of successful teaching in Head Start as expressed by the participants. The process of communication among parents, students, and teachers was described as important to student learning. The participants' expressed a variety of approaches to how they understood student behavior, boys' social emotional development, and classroom practices. These Head Start teachers described boys as more active than girls, as more aggressive than girls, and sometimes more challenged to express strong emotions with language than girls. This study provides some insight into the role that culturally relevant teaching beliefs play in Head Start teachers' successful

School science education prepares learners to study science at a higher level, prepares them to follow a career in science and to become scientific literate citizens. It is the responsibility of the educator to ensure the learners’ conceptual framework is developed to the extent that secures success at higher level studies. The purpose of this study was to test the effectiveness of conceptual change teaching strategies on the conceptual development of grade 11 learners on Newton’s second law of motion. The two strategies employed were the cognitive conflict strategy and the development of ideas strategy. A sequential explanatory mixed-method research design was used during this study. The qualitative data were used to elucidate the quantitative findings. The quantitative research consisted of a quasi-experimental design consisting of a single-group pre-test–post-test method. During the qualitative part of the research a phenomenological research approach was utilised to gain a better understanding of participants’ learning experiences during the intervention. The quantitative research made use of an adapted version of the Force Concept Inventory (FCI). The data collected from the pre-test were used to inform the intervention. The intervention was videotaped and the video analysis or qualitative data analysis was done. After the intervention the post-test was written by the learners. Hake’s average normalised learning gain <g> from pre- to post-scores was analysed to establish the effectiveness of the intervention. The two sets of results (quantitative and qualitative) were integrated. Information from the qualitative data analysis was used to support and explain the quantitative data. The quantitative results indicate that there was an improvement in the students’ force conception from their initial alternative conceptions, such as that of an internal force. Especially the learners’ understanding of contact forces and Newton’s first law of motion yielded significant improvement. The qualitative data revealed that the understanding of Newton’s second law of motion by the learners who partook in this study did improve, since the learners immediately recognised the mistakes made when confronted with the anchor concept. The cognitive conflict teaching strategy was effective in establishing the anchor concept of force which proved to be useful as bridging concept in the development of ideas teaching strategy. The data from both datasets revealed that the cognitive conflict teaching strategy for the initial part of the intervention was effective. It was evident that for development of the idea teaching strategy the two data sets revealed mixed results. Recommendations were made for future research and implementation of conceptual development teaching strategies. / MEd (Natural Sciences Education), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014

School science education prepares learners to study science at a higher level, prepares them to follow a career in science and to become scientific literate citizens. It is the responsibility of the educator to ensure the learners’ conceptual framework is developed to the extent that secures success at higher level studies. The purpose of this study was to test the effectiveness of conceptual change teaching strategies on the conceptual development of grade 11 learners on Newton’s second law of motion. The two strategies employed were the cognitive conflict strategy and the development of ideas strategy. A sequential explanatory mixed-method research design was used during this study. The qualitative data were used to elucidate the quantitative findings. The quantitative research consisted of a quasi-experimental design consisting of a single-group pre-test–post-test method. During the qualitative part of the research a phenomenological research approach was utilised to gain a better understanding of participants’ learning experiences during the intervention. The quantitative research made use of an adapted version of the Force Concept Inventory (FCI). The data collected from the pre-test were used to inform the intervention. The intervention was videotaped and the video analysis or qualitative data analysis was done. After the intervention the post-test was written by the learners. Hake’s average normalised learning gain <g> from pre- to post-scores was analysed to establish the effectiveness of the intervention. The two sets of results (quantitative and qualitative) were integrated. Information from the qualitative data analysis was used to support and explain the quantitative data. The quantitative results indicate that there was an improvement in the students’ force conception from their initial alternative conceptions, such as that of an internal force. Especially the learners’ understanding of contact forces and Newton’s first law of motion yielded significant improvement. The qualitative data revealed that the understanding of Newton’s second law of motion by the learners who partook in this study did improve, since the learners immediately recognised the mistakes made when confronted with the anchor concept. The cognitive conflict teaching strategy was effective in establishing the anchor concept of force which proved to be useful as bridging concept in the development of ideas teaching strategy. The data from both datasets revealed that the cognitive conflict teaching strategy for the initial part of the intervention was effective. It was evident that for development of the idea teaching strategy the two data sets revealed mixed results. Recommendations were made for future research and implementation of conceptual development teaching strategies. / MEd (Natural Sciences Education), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014

This dissertation research study explored how registered nurses (RNs) use mobile devices as tools to support and enhance informal learning in their work settings. The mixed methods inquiry involved select Canadian practicing and regulated RNs who used mobile devices in their workplaces. A sequential explanatory research design collected quantitative and qualitative data using an online survey and semi-structured interviews. Quota sampling for the quantitative component yielded 170 usable online surveys. From the survey respondents, interview volunteers were purposively selected and ten (10) interviews were conducted. Descriptive, inferential, inductive, and integrated data analyses were conducted in order to explore strategies, processes, purposes, modes of use (individual [non-collaborative] or collaborative), and age-generational differences associated with RNs’ use of mobile devices for informal learning in the workplace. Findings indicated that the study participants primarily used their handheld devices for self-directed informal learning with non-collaborative strategies or processes in their work settings for accessing online resources for a range of reasons including: evidence-based support, new procedures/treatments, professional development, patient/client teaching, and maintaining competency. Age differences related to the use of mobile devices for informal learning were minimal. However, workplace-related influences including deficiencies in formal educational resources, Internet access, and/or employer support were relevant to the informal learning experiences. Positive perceptions of efficiencies, self-confidence, patient/client safety, patients/clients’ reactions, and the need for sanctioned resources for using mobile technologies in the healthcare workplace were articulated. The findings pointed to the significance of mobile devices as learning tools for RNs’ informal learning for construction of knowledge and meaning-making to inform professional development and continuing competence. / 2013-01

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