The aim of this study is to deepen the knowledge about teachers’ attitudes towards aesthetic learning processes and how they, based on their perception of opportunities and obstacles, chose to include aesthetic elements in Swedish teaching.  The study focused on the teachers’ perceptions, which means that the analysis of collected data material has a phenomenographic approach. Semi-structured interviews were used as a method to collect material. Eight active Swedish teachers working in grades 4-6 chose to participate in the study. They participated in individual digital interviews.  The teachers in this study were positive about working with aesthetic learning processes, as it was seen as engaging and knowledge-enhancing for the students. However, the teachers’ own attitudes towards working aesthetically differed between the teachers. Some expressed that they enjoyed working aesthetically, while others felt greater uncertainty and ignorance within certain aesthetic forms of expression. Uncertainty was seen as an obstacle. Other perceived challenges were lack of time, lack of resources, assessment difficulties and that aesthetic activities were not prioritized. The result showed that the teachers would like increased access to resources and requested competence development in the area. The result revealed a connection between teachers’ knowledge of, interest in and application of aesthetic learning processes. / Syftet med denna studie var att fördjupa kunskaperna kring lärares inställning till estetiska lärprocesser samt hur de utifrån sin uppfattning om möjligheter och hinder valde att inkludera estetiska inslag i svenskundervisningen. Undersökningen fokuserade på lärares uppfattningar, vilket betyder att analysen av insamlat datamaterial har en fenomenografisk ansats. För att samla in material användes semistrukturerade intervjuer som metod. Åtta verksamma svensklärare som arbetar i årskurs 4–6 valde att delta i studien och deltagandet skedde genom enskilda digitala intervjuer.  Lärarna i studien var positivt inställda till att arbeta med estetiska lärprocesser, då det sågs som engagerande och kunskapsstärkande för eleverna. Lärarnas egen inställning till att arbeta estetiskt skilde sig dock mellan lärarna. Några uttryckte att de tyckte mycket om att själva arbeta estetiskt medan andra kände större osäkerhet och okunskap inom vissa estetiska uttrycksformer. Osäkerheten sågs som ett hinder. Andra upplevda utmaningar var brist på tid, brist på resurser, bedömningssvårigheter och att estetisk verksamhet inte prioriterades. Resultatet visade att lärarna önskade ökad tillgång till resurser samt efterfrågade kompetensutveckling inom området. I studien framkom ett samband mellan lärarnas kunskap kring, intresse för och tillämpning av estetiska lärprocesser.

Student self-report surveys showed bullying behaviors were problematic among students in one Midwest middle school. Despite implementing a version of the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program, students continued to self-report bullying behaviors that occurred on school property during school hours. It is crucial that educators are proactive in intervening and preventing bullying to establish a safe environment for academic success. The purpose of this study was to describe teachers' perceptions of bullying behaviors and their practices in reporting bullying incidents. Bandura's social learning and Locke's social contract theories served as the study's framework. Teachers were asked to describe behaviors they perceived as bullying and their practices in reporting bullying incidents. A qualitative, bounded, descriptive case study was used to collect interview data from 12 purposefully selected classroom teachers who were tasked with bullying intervention and prevention. Thematic analysis using the lean, open coding strategy was used to analyze the data. Teachers reported observing physical, verbal, and cyber bullying behaviors, credited their bullying knowledge to schoolwide professional development (PD), and believed they recognized bullying behaviors when incidents occurred. Teachers also reported bullying incidents to the principal and to parents if they had a positive relationship with them. Based on these findings, a 4-day PD was designed for teachers to collaboratively develop uniform practices in reporting bullying incidents to parents or guardians. These endeavors may contribute to positive social change by equipping teachers with procedures in reporting bullying incidents; thus, reducing bullying, improving the learning environment, and creating a safer school culture for teachers and students.

At Base Elementary School (BES) in the Southwest United States school administrators were concerned that writing proficiency levels for 2014-2015 were below district and state standards and there was not a clear understanding of teachers' perceptions on writing proficiency of military-connected (MC) students at the target site. Therefore, the purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore teachers' perceptions on writing proficiency of MC students at BES. Using Lave and Wenger's communities of practice framework, a qualitative instrumental case study was used to discern perceptions of elementary English Language Arts (ELA) teachers regarding the writing proficiency of MC students. Through a purposeful sample of 12 ELA teachers, telephone interviews were used to explore teachers' writing perceptions. Data from interviews were analyzed using inductive and iterative analysis resulting in identification of key themes. Major themes included the status of existing writing practices, diverse culture of MC students, need for collaborative relationship building among teachers, and the need for targeted writing professional development (PD) focused on connecting evidence-based practices (EBP) to state writing standards using culturally responsive practices (CRP). The resulting project of a white paper, will promote stakeholder awareness of teachers' perceptions, includes themes supporting the findings with recommendations that teachers would benefit from targeted writing PD focused on EBP and CRP using a collaborative model. Teacher use of these recommendations may promote social change by improving writing support for MC students possibly leading to improved performance on state proficiency assessments.

African American male students (AAMSs) can benefit from literacy instruction that is student-based and geared towards using higher-level thinking skills. The conceptual framework was guided by Dewey's constructivism theory, the purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore whether high school English language arts (ELA) teachers in an urban-suburban Midwest region of the United States have sufficient knowledge and skills to incorporate higher order thinking skills (HOT) instruction for AAMSs. Five ELA teachers from a low-performing, urban-suburban high school in the Midwest region of the United States participated in semistructured interviews; observations were conducted in the classroom, and lesson plans were reviewed. Patterns, categories, and themes emerged through using the coding process by breaking down the data into units and then grouped according to their characteristics. According to the findings, participants from this study suggested that problem- solving was the main higher level thinking skill for AAMSs. These local ELA teachers also used the Socratic questioning method as their primary instructional strategy but limited constructivist activities for AAMSs to engage during the instructional process. The findings from the data collection support the development of a professional training program. The professional development program could help teachers engage AAMSs in increasing their academic endeavors. ELA teachers can participate in professional learning communities by communicating concerns about AAMSs, using HOT skills to increase AAMSs literacy performance, become change agents, and promote a positive social change by using constructivist practices into school curriculum and instructions for AAMSs, eventually closing the achievement gap.

Den 1 juli 2018 trädde en rad förändringar i kraft i den svenska skolans läroplaner och kursplaner. Det är bland annat skrivningar om programmering i kursplanerna i teknik och matematik i grundskolan. Det här examensarbetet undersöker lärares uppfattningar kring införandet av programmering i teknikämnet på grundskolans högstadium. Undersökningen har för avsikt att svara på följande frågeställningar: Hur beskriver tekniklärare sina tolkningar av kursplansinnehållet gällande programmering i ämnet teknik på grundskolans högstadium?samt Vilka föreställningar återfinns hos lärare om undervisningen av detta innehåll? För att ta reda på vilka uppfattningar som lärare kan ha, intervjuades fem verksamma lärare som undervisar i teknik. En fenomenografisk analysmodell har använts för behandlingen av insamlade data från intervjuerna. Resultatet av studien påvisar att trots att lärarna saknar kompetens och erfarenheter i undervisning i programmering, har de en positiv syn till integreringen av programmering i teknik och uttrycker att det är en viktig del i elevernas utbildning. Vidare framkommer att lärarna beskriver formuleringarna gällande programmering i kursplanen för teknik som svårtolkad. Resultatet visar även att deltagande i fortbildning har givit lärarna uppfattningen av att programmering i teknik innebär styra konstruktioner genom att programmera Microbit. I resultatet framkommer även att somliga lärare lever i föreställningen att eleverna kan lära sig programmering bättre än lärarna själva samt att eleverna kan lära sig själva utan att ha blivit undervisade vilket tycks vara en märklig uppfattning. / On July 1, 2018, several changes took effect in curricula and syllabi in the Swedish school. These changes include knowledge about programming in the syllabi of technology and mathematics in compulsory school. This thesis examines teachers’ perceptions of the phenomenon introduction of programming in the subject of lower secondary school technology. The survey intended to answer the following questions: How do technology teachers describe their interpretations of the syllabus content regarding programming in the subject of technology at the lower secondary school? and What ideas do teachers have about teaching this content? To find out what perceptionsteachers may have about programming, five technology teachers were interviewed. A phenomenographical analysis model has been used for the processing of collected data from the interviews. The results of the study show that although teachers lack the skills and experience in teaching programming, they have a positive view on the integration of programming in technology subject and believe that it is an important part of students' education. Furthermore, it emerges that the teachers describe the content formulations concerning programming in the technology syllabus as difficult to interpret.The result also shows that participation in professional development course has given the teachers the idea that programming in technology involves controlling constructions by programming Microbit. Moreover, it emerged that there is an acceptance for the notion that students can learn programming better than the teachers and even the students can learn by themselves without being taught, which seems to be remarkable.

Det här examensarbetet undersöker sex lärares uppfattningar kring skiss- och ritteknik på högstadiet. Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka hur lärare uppfattar undervisningsmetoder kopplade till skiss- och ritteknik inom teknikämnet på högstadiet. Undersökningen besvarar följande två frågor:1. Hur undervisar lärarna i skiss- och ritteknik i grundskolans teknikämne, åk 7–9? 2. Hur erfar och uppfattar lärarna undervisningen? För att ta reda på vilka uppfattningar lärarna har i ovanstående frågor ställdes fem frågor till sex lärare från olika skolor som undervisar i teknik för åk 7–9. Uppsatsens syfte är att analysera tekniklärares olika uppfattningar, beskrivningar, synpunkter och erfarenheter av ritteknikundervisningen snarare än att analysera deras kunskaper om ritteknik. Metoden är kvalitativ med semistrukturerade intervjuer och materialet behandlas genom en fenomenografisk analysmodell.Resultatet visar att tre av de intervjuade tekniklärarna undervisar skiss- och ritteknik så att eleverna arbetar både för hand och digitalt via program på datorn. Resterande intervjudeltagare använde främst rittekniken för hand men vid enstaka tillfällen digital handritning. Lärarnas erfarenheter och uppfattningar om metoderna visar att både ritning för hand och digitalt bör kombineras i undervisningen för att uppnå lärandemålen utifrån centrala innehållet för åk 7–9. Enligt lärarna är det viktigt att väcka elevernas tekniska intresse genom att låta de använda sig av olika metoder vid skiss- och ritteknik. Slutligen framkommer även att lärarna har gemensamma uppfattningar om båda teknikernas för- och nackdelar. De påpekar bland annat att eleverna upplever liknande svårigheter i undervisningen, vilket påverkar elevernas lärande. / This degree project investigates teachers’ perceptions of sketch-drawing techniques in secondary schools. This study aims to examine how teachers perceive teaching methods linked to sketch-drawing techniques within technics classes in secondary schools. The purpose of the study is to answer the following questions:1. How do teachers in technic class teach sketch-drawing techniques in secondary schools, grades 7-9? 2. How do the teachers experience and perceive the teaching? To find out which perceptions teachers have about sketch-drawing techniques, five questions were asked to the teachers who teach technics classes in grades 7-9. The purpose of the study was not to analyze teachers´ knowledge rather it was to analyze the technics teachers’ perceptions, descriptions, views, and experiences when they teach different sketch-drawing techniques in secondary classes. Six different technic class teachers who work at different schools were interviewed, and a phenomenographic analysis model was implemented to process the collected data from the interviews. In addition, a qualitative interview is used with the interviewees. According to the teachers' descriptions, most teachers teach sketching and hand drawing, but fewer teachers teach both hand and digital drawing. All the teachers agree that hand and digital drawing must be combined in teaching to achieve the learning outcomes based on the central content for grades 7–9. According to the teachers, it is important to arouse the students' technical interest by letting them use different methods for sketching and drawing techniques. Finally, it also appears that the teachers have common perceptions about the advantages and disadvantages of both techniques. They point out, among other things, whether the students experience similar difficulties in teaching and how this affects the students' learning.

This study focused on learners’ assessment practices in overcrowded classes in Kamwenge District, Uganda. Apart from a literature review, an empirical investigation based on qualitative and quantitative methods were used to collect data by the researcher at 4 primary schools in Kamwenge district so as to find answers to the research questions. The empirical findings elicited that all teachers agreed that assessment was useful to them and had a clear idea of what classroom assessment was all about. An interpretive paradigm made it possible for the researcher to gain an in-depth understanding of learners’ assessment practices within their school contexts. There was a mismatch between what teachers said they do and what they practiced and this follows that the majority of teachers may have the theoretical knowledge of methods and tools used to assess learners but fail to translate it to classroom practice. / Educational Leadership and Management / M. Ed. (Educational Management)

This study focused on learners’ assessment practices in overcrowded classes in Kamwenge District, Uganda. Apart from a literature review, an empirical investigation based on qualitative and quantitative methods were used to collect data by the researcher at 4 primary schools in Kamwenge district so as to find answers to the research questions. The empirical findings elicited that all teachers agreed that assessment was useful to them and had a clear idea of what classroom assessment was all about. An interpretive paradigm made it possible for the researcher to gain an in-depth understanding of learners’ assessment practices within their school contexts. There was a mismatch between what teachers said they do and what they practiced and this follows that the majority of teachers may have the theoretical knowledge of methods and tools used to assess learners but fail to translate it to classroom practice. / Educational Leadership and Management / M. Ed. (Educational Management)

Previous studies have shown that teachers and students using English as the medium of instruction (EMI) in science classrooms encounter many language challenges with teaching and learning processes. Problems include the limited English communication skills of science teachers, the lack of EMI training for science teachers, the students' different language abilities and science teachers' beliefs that they are not responsible for addressing students' language needs in science. Teachers' lack of language awareness has led to poor teaching practices and limited interactions in the classrooms. This lack of language awareness, in turn, suggests that there are limited opportunities for students to learn English as a second language in the science classroom. This study extends the research on EMI classroom interactions in Hong Kong (Lo and Macaro, 2012) to the previously unexamined context of senior secondary science classrooms. A total of 19 teachers and 545 students from grades 10 and 11 EMI science class were recruited in Hong Kong from 'early-full EMI' schools (full EMI instruction from grades 7 to 12) and 'late-partial EMI' schools (Chinese medium from grades 7 to 9 and partial EMI instruction from grades 10 to 12). The project used multiple sources of qualitative data (i.e. semi-structured interviews and 33 videotaped classroom observations) to explore the similarities and differences in classroom interactions during the first and second years of the senior science curriculum (grades 10 and 11) in the two types of EMI schools. This project also investigated these science teachers' and students' perceptions of EMI teaching and learning processes, their preference of instructional language and their beliefs about teaching and learning in the EMI environment. Interviews also probed teachers' language awareness, teachers' and students' belief about EMI, students' self-concepts in science (students' perceptions or beliefs about their ability to do well in science, see Wilkins, 2004)) and their perceptions of language challenges and coping strategies in EMI classrooms. The results from the observational data show similar interactional patterns in both early-full and late-partial EMI science classrooms when measured as percentages of interaction time, distribution of time between teacher and student talk and frequency of pedagogical functions. However, the nature of the interactions is different. In late-partial EMI schools, overall, there are more (but shorter) student initiations and responses, more use of higher-order questions from the teachers but less direct feedback to students. Both teachers and students tend to use their L1 more. In both types of schools, there was less interaction time and a lower maximum length of student turns and more L1 use in grade 11 than in grade 10. The discourse analysis of the four biology lesson transcripts also shows that both early-full and late-partial EMI students predominantly produced incomplete sentences consisting of short, technical nouns or noun phrases referring to scientific items. Science teachers rarely made any attempts to correct their students' language mistakes, nor did they encourage students to produce a complete sentence. This lack of teacher feedback on students' L2 language production perhaps reflects the fact that EMI science teachers rarely provide comprehensible input to facilitate students' L2 language learning. These findings suggest the important role of the teacher's modified input in teacher-student interaction in developing students' content knowledge and language skills. The adoption of EMI appears to lead to the development of students' comprehension of content knowledge more than development of their language production skills. As a result of their language shortfalls, the students' L2 productive skills remain under-developed despite English instruction. This lack of language support by teachers appears to indicate a gap between the aims of the EMI policy and its implementation. The interview and questionnaire data show that the science teachers from both the early-full and late-partial EMI schools held many of the same views about their EMI teaching experiences, but they differed in their attitudes towards the value of English language skills and their language awareness. The early-full EMI teachers believed English language skills were important and these early-full teachers have a higher language awareness than the late-partial EMI science teachers. Students from both types of schools also held similar views about their EMI learning, indicating that they welcome the adoption of EMI instruction. However, while the late-partial EMI students see EMI as an opportunity to improve their English, those in the early-full EMI schools believe that EMI discouraged them from learning. By providing an evidence-based, pedagogically focused analysis of teacher and student classroom interactions and their perceptions, this research sheds light on ways to improve the quality of instructional practices in different EMI classrooms in Hong Kong and in similar contexts around the world.

The purpose of the research in this mini-dissertation was to explore the perceptions of teachers regarding the implementation of the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) in one of the schools in Nzhelele West Circuit. The particular area was chosen because there are a number of rural, disadvantaged schools. The study further identified and clarified the possible obstacles to the implementation of CAPS. This study was exploratory and qualitative in nature, and adopted a case study research design to investigate teachers’ perceptions of the implementation of CAPS in the chosen area. The research was performed with a sample of purposively selected participants, namely the principal, one Head of Department, and four teachers. Semi-structured interviews, observation and document analyses were the methods of data collection. Document analysis was used to corroborate the data collected through observation and interviews. The findings indicated that teachers were not ready to accept and implement the new curriculum. Although the findings highlighted the differences in their knowledge regarding the introduction of CAPS, they shared the same sentiments regarding the interpretation and understanding of CAPS content and components. Furthermore, this study revealed that some encounters impeded teachers from successfully implementing the CAPS. It was clear that teachers required comprehensive orientation and further training on the subject, as well as relevant teaching and learning support material, support and frequent monitoring, proper infrastructure, and a conducive teaching and learning environment. The findings highlighted that without the mentioned challenges, it was not possible to successfully implement CAPS. Based on the findings from interviews, observations and document analysis, the study made the following recommendations: in order to ensure effective CAPS implementation, the Department of Education and curriculum designers have to consult widely and involve teachers and parents during the planning phase. In addition, teacher development has to be a priority in the process of introducing every new curriculum, and teachers need to be monitored and supported in order to enhance the quality of teaching and learning. / Curriculum and Instructional Studies / M. Ed. (Curriculum Studies)