Research shows that quality teachers are the single most significant influence on the quality of education available to
students. This recognition of the importance of quality teachers on quality education is reflected in goal 6 of the EFA: Quality
Education. EFA proxies for quality, however, are dubious measures of the concept......What does the concept quality mean when applied to
the work of teaching or to the business of education? How do we know quality when we see it? Is it the same from culture to culture or
does it differ based on the educational aims of different societies? Despite EFA's emphasis on improving the quality of education, quality
education remains elusive in many developing countries. Cambodia, for instance, has enjoyed considerable international assistance for more
than four decades, yet the quality of Cambodian education remains low by both Cambodian and international standards. What might explain
the failure of decades of assistance to improve education in Cambodia? This study argues that before this question can be answered and
more effective steps taken in the development of Cambodian education we must have a clearer understanding of the conceptualization and
operationalization of the concept "quality" in the constructs "quality teachers" and "quality education" in the Cambodian context to
understand whether and how it differs from that implied in the theory and practice of Cambodia's international donors. Differences may
help explain the difficulty encountered in improving the quality of education in Cambodia and point to more effective strategies to
achieve this elusive goal. To this end, this inquiry deployed a hybrid methodology called philosophical ethnography to discover the
conceptions of quality held by Khmer teacher training instructors and administrators. This discovery is guided by the idea of dialogue
expressed by Jürgen Habermas and implemented by Paolo Freire. Findings indicate that there is a tension between traditional Khmer
conceptions of quality and those emphasized in modern conceptions of quality education. Traditional Cambodian conceptions of quality
reflect Buddhist social virtues including of ទាន (tian, generosity), មេត្តា (mey-ta, generosity), ករុណា (garunna, compassion), មូទិតា
(mutita, empathetic joy), and ឧបេក្ខា (upeka, equanimity) to be a good person in a moral sense. This differs from modern conceptions of
quality that emphasize equality, individual achievement, and economic drive for education to produce a person with the knowledge, skills,
and abilities to do some job that supports the growth of the economic machine. The results of this study suggest that the introduction of
modern ideas of quality in education beginning with the French in the 19th century and continuing today through foreign aid donations have
permeated the education sector in Cambodia influence how Cambodian teacher trainers perceive quality education with respect to how day to
day operations of education should function and influence contemporary policy decisions. Despite the push to change reform Cambodian
education, participants indicate that being a good person (in the Buddhist sense) is still how quality should be measured and should be
the primary objective of Cambodian education. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies in partial
fulfillment of the Doctor of Philosophy. / Spring Semester 2016. / February 24, 2016. / Cambodia, Teacher education / Includes bibliographical references. / Jeffrey Ayala Milligan, Professor Directing Dissertation; Michael Ruse, University
Representative; Stacey Rutledge, Committee Member; Lara Perez-Felkner, Committee Member.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_360449 |
| Contributors | Stanfill, Enoch M. (authoraut), Milligan, Jeffrey Ayala (professor directing dissertation), Ruse, Michael (university representative), Rutledge, Stacy A. (committee member), Perez-Felkner, Lara (committee member), Florida State University (degree granting institution), College of Education (degree granting college), Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies (degree granting department) |
| Publisher | Florida State University, Florida State University |
| Source Sets | Florida State University |
| Language | English, English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text, text |
| Format | 1 online resource (175 pages), computer, application/pdf |
| Rights | This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s). The copyright in theses and dissertations completed at Florida State University is held by the students who author them. |
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