Purpose: Farm to School (F2S) Programs are increasing in number across the United States, yet research on teachers’ perceptions and practices about F2S is limited. Teachers are a key component of any F2S program, since their acceptance and support influences program implementation and sustainability. The purpose of this study was to examine teacher practices, attitudes, and perceptions about the Decatur F2S Program. Methods: City Schools of Decatur teachers completed a questionnaire designed to obtain information concerning their practices, attitudes, and perceptions regarding the Decatur F2S Program. Participants indicated their level of agreement with 18 statements using a Likert scale rating, answered an open-ended question, and recorded both implemented and desired F2S activities. Cumulative frequencies were determined for all questionnaire items, and themes were extracted for the open-ended question. Results: Seventy percent of K – 12 teachers would like to see F2S activities implemented in their classroom, and 28% of these teachers already implement some F2S activity. The majority of teachers had positive perceptions about the Decatur Farm to School Program’s impact on students, the local economy, and the environment. Teachers perceived that the F2S programs encompassed four themes: 1) supplying schools with locally grown foods; 2) educating children on healthy eating, food, and nutrition; 3) educating children on gardening and growing foods; and 4) building a strong connection between local farms, schools, and communities. Conclusion: There is a high degree of interest and support for the Decatur F2S Program by City Schools of Decatur teachers, which is consistent with efforts to implement F2S Programs across the country. Most teachers were not familiar with the CSD F2S Program but would desire F2S activities in their schools.

There is a discrepancy between national school guidelines towards inclusive education, and the current political trend towards economic efficacy, that may be problematic for teachers. The aim of this contextual study is to formulate a contextual understanding of the participating teachers’ perceptions of their effort to help all their students achieve the goals set forth by school curricula, and use this understanding for the purpose of suggesting points of entry for special needs educators´ guidance of teachers’ practices towards more inclusive education. Information was gathered by sending an extensive web questionnaire to all teachers within a given headmaster´s administration, sending web questionnaires to a majority of third grade students taught by those teachers, conducting interviews with a few of the participating teachers as well as with the special needs educators, carrying out a classroom observation, and gathering additional information concerning working conditions and social interactions. The data gathered in this case study has been subjected to an analytical process comprising of an assessment of the degree of inclusive approach, using the Inclusive Approach through Participation as well as the Framework of Participation, technical triangulation of all data post the inclusive assessment, and analysis of context by the Ecology of Human Development/the Bioecological Theory. The analytical process has resulted in a contextual description that has enabled me to suggest possible points of entry to be used in special needs educators’ guidance of teachers’ practices towards inclusive education. The degree to which there exists a collegial sense of security, varied forms of teacher-student interactions, collegial cooperation, pedagogical discussions, a dialogue in search of mutual understanding, and consequent follow-ups appears, in the light of the limited selection of participants, as relevant to these teachers ability to help their students. Further research is needed to identify valid points of entry for special needs educators’ guidance of teachers’ practices towards inclusive education. This contextual study will hopefully inspire further research into teachers´ perceptions of their work to facilitate implementation of inclusive education and thereby improve every student´s ability to achieve the set goals.

Syftet med studien är att undersöka några lärares uppfattningar, strategier och förutsättningar för att arbeta med STL- metoden för elever i läs- och skrivsvårigheter. Frågeställningarna som står i fokus är hur lärarna i studien uppfattar att metoden påverkar lärandet för elever i läs- och skrivsvårigheter, strategier och förutsättningar som krävs för att arbeta med metoden och anpassningar som behövs för att eleverna i läs- och skrivsvårigheter ska få ut det mesta av metoden. Studien bygger på fem semistrukturerade intervjuer med verksamma lärare i STL- metoden, skriva sig till lärande, med olika erfarenheter av läs- och skrivlärande samt olika många år inom yrket. Vid intervjuerna användes en intervjuguide och under samtalets gång ställdes följdfrågor. Intervjuerna transkriberades för att sedan blir analyserade med hermeneutiken utifrån ett sociokulturellt perspektiv. Resultat visar på några faktorer som är viktiga vad det gäller STL som arbetssätt för elever i läs- och skrivsvårigheter som till exempel anpassa uppgifter, anpassa responsarbete, organisera grupp eller pararbete, uppdatera kompensatoriska hjälpmedel och arbeta med klimatet i klassen så att elever i svårigheter känner sig inkluderade, som en i gemenskapen och motiverade till sitt arbete. / The purpose of the study is to investigate some teachers' perceptions, strategies and conditions for working with the WTL (Writing to Learn) method for students in reading and writing difficulties in earlier years. The issues that are in focus is how the teachers in the study perceive that the method affects the learning of students in reading and writing difficulties such as, strategies and conditions required for working with the method and adjustments necessary for students in reading and writing difficulties, how they will get the most out of the method. The study is based on five semi-structured interviews with experienced teachers practising the WTL method, with different experiences of literacy teaching and different many years in the profession. The interviewer used an interview guide and follow-up questions were asked during the interview. The interviews were transcribed and then analyzed with hermeneutic from a sociocultural perspective. Results indicated some factors that are important in terms of the WTL method for students in reading and writing difficulties, such as adapting tasks, customize response work, organizing group or pair work, update compensatory aids and work with the climate in the class so that students in reading and writing difficulties feel themselves included as one in the community and motivated in their work.

Skolan ska genomsyras av ett jämställdhetsperspektiv. Granskningar visar dock att det finns brister i skolors jämställdhetsarbete och det finns en rad jämställdhetsproblem i skolan. Många av problemen kan kopplas till könsnormer, varför svenska skolmyndigheter förespråkar ett normmedvetet förhållningssätt. Samtidigt visar granskningar att lärare saknar kunskap om just normer. Syftet med studien är att undersöka normmedvetna grundskollärares uppfattningar om hur ett jämställdhetsperspektiv kan genomsyra undervisningen i enlighet med vad som beskrivs i läroplanen, för att bidra med verktyg för hur lärare kan arbeta med ett jämställdhetsperspektiv på undervisningen. Studien utgår från ett normkritiskt perspektiv och består av kvalitativa intervjuer med sex grundskollärare som uppfattar sig själva som normmedvetna. Resultatet visar flera sätt på vilka normmedvetna lärare beskriver att ett jämställdhetsperspektiv kan genomsyra undervisningen: strategier för att fördela talutrymmet jämställt, reflekterande frågor för att synliggöra egna föreställningar om kön, förslag på övningar för att kritiskt granska normer om kön och etnicitet, konkreta exempel på representation i undervisningsmaterial samt tankar om hur gruppindelning och varierade arbetssätt kan bidra till jämställdhet. Lärarna utgick ofta från ett intersektionellt perspektiv, men en del lärare saknade kunskap om hur olika normer påverkar varandra. Vidare identifieras flera dilemman med ett normmedvetet jämställdhetsarbete: att synliggöra könsskillnader utan att befästa olikheter mellan könen och att normmedvetenhet tycks förutsätta en vilja att kritiskt granska sig själv, något som bygger på intresse samtidigt som det är problematiskt om jämställdhetsfrågan ses som en intressefråga. Därutöver diskuteras dilemmat att konkretisera jämställdhetsuppdraget för att bidra med verktyg och samtidigt belysa risken med att mekanisera jämställdhetsuppdraget. / The school system should be permeated by a perspective of gender equality. However, studies have shown that there are shortcomings in the work being done for gender equality; and the lack of gender equality manifests itself in several issues. Many of these can be attributed to gender norms, which is why Swedish school authorities advocate a norm critical approach. Yet, surveys have shown that teachers are lacking knowledge of gender norms. The purpose of this study is to investigate the views of norm critical elementary school teachers on how a gender equality perspective could permeate teaching in accordance with what is prescribed in the curriculum, in order to provide tools for how teachers could work with gender equality in their teaching. The study is grounded in a norm critical perspective and consists of qualitative interviews with six elementary school teachers perceiving themselves to be norm critical. The results indicate several possible ways of establishing a permeating gender equality perspective on teaching: strategies for dividing the opportunity to speak gender equally; reflective questions for identifying your own notions of gender; suggestions of exercises for challenging norms about gender and ethnicity; practical examples of representation in teaching material as well as ideas about how grouping and varied ways of working can contribute to gender equality. Many teachers were grounded in an intersectional perspective, but some teachers lacked knowledge of how different norms affect each other. Furthermore, several dilemmas of a norm critical gender equality approach were identified: to make gender differences visible without consolidating differences between the genders, and that being norm critical seems to presuppose a willingness to critically question oneself. This willingness presupposes being interested in the topic, but portraying gender equality as a question of interest is problematic. Additionally, the dilemma of turning the gender equality commitment into a set of practical tools while also acknowledging the risk of mechanizing it is discussed.

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.