Faculty of Education - Theses
Permanent URI for this collection
Search Results
1 - 10 of 12
-
ItemA study of transformational and transactional leadership among leaders at the Rajabhat University, Thailand( 2007)The purpose of this thesis was to investigate the leadership styles and organizational culture in The Rajabhat University in Thailand as viewed from the leaders' and non-leaders' perspectives. The study examined leadership behavior based on the notions of transformational and transactional leadership. A survey research methodology was used to gather data from six departments in The Rajabhat University. A total of 96 leaders and 99 non-leaders responded to the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ), and 95 leaders and 101 non-leaders responded to the Organizational Description Questionnaire (ODQ). Leaders perceived their leadership styles to be transformational. Conversely, the non-leaders perceived the leadership styles of their leaders as highly transactional. These results were confirmed by the results of the organizational culture surveys both leaders and non-leaders agreed that the organizational culture were moderately transformational and highly transactional, with non-leaders viewing organizational culture as more transactional than that viewed by the leaders. Transformational leadership culture has been associated with improved organizational outcomes These findings suggest that organizations like The Rajabhat University may need to develop a more transformational leadership culture.
-
ItemLeadership and success in educational reform in Thailand( 2004)This thesis presents the results of a study to examine the relationship between leadership and success in educational reform in Rajabhat Institutes in Thailand. A strong emphasis was placed on the effects of leadership, reflecting both 'eastern' and 'western' perspectives and successful educational reform. The study employed a mixed method design in which both quantitative and qualitative data were collected and analysed to answer a research question: 'How do presidents influence the achievement of successful educational reform in Rajabhat Institutes in Thailand?' The two types of data were collected independently. Quantitative data were gathered by questionnaire administered to 492 staff (308 females; 184 males) from three Rajabhat Institutes located in Bangkok, Thailand, who were nominated for their success in educational reform. Qualitative data derived from semi-structured interviews with the three presidents and a small selection of staff who were nominated by the presidents. Observations and analysis of secondary data were also employed. Some interesting findings emerged from the quantitative data analysis. As far as direct effects are concerned, results showed that a service-oriented leadership style, reflecting a "western" perspective had a strong direct effect on educational reform in Thailand. Dhamma-oriented leadership style reflecting an "eastern" approach had a negative direct effect on educational reform. However, dhamma-oriented leadership had a positive but indirect effect mediated by servant leadership. The findings from interviews were consistent with results derived from quantitative data. The study revealed that the combination of the two leadership approaches (dhamma-oriented and servant leadership) were used by the presidents of the three Rajabhat Institutes as instruments for successful educational reform. The findings have implications for practice in making educational reform a reality in similar settings in Thailand. First, leaders should focus on ensuring meaning in the work and be responsive to the needs of subordinates. They should be visionary and serve the well-being of others through their goals and work to accomplish the agreed-upon vision. Second, productive institutions require trust so that cooperation may emerge. In the Thai context, trust has been created by the moral behaviour of leaders. This moral behaviour can add value through mutual understanding, creating a process for the achievement of educational reform in Thailand. It is concluded that both approaches to leadership were important factors in achieving success in educational reform in Thailand.
-
ItemTeachers' roles : catering for the marginal child in Thailand's border schools( 2005)This thesis investigates the roles of primary school teachers who work in remote areas along the Thai-Burmese border in Ratchaburi Province, Thailand. It also develops a framework to re-conceptualize teacher education so that it will be more concerned with the needs of poor, marginal children who are linguistically and culturally diverse, and with the needs of illiterate villagers, and remote communities. A qualitative study was conducted in the three remote primary school settings with high percentages of bilingual students in the Province. The teachers, the headmasters, the school supervisors, the school board members and the provincial primary education administrator were involved in the study. Data was collected by means of personal diaries, individual interviews, focus group interviews, open-ended responses to a questionnaire, school documentation, a personal letter, and the Rajabhat Universities' teacher education curricula. Data was analyzed using the Princess Sirindhorn's Children Development Projects to indicate the current and expected roles of teachers, and then the data was triangulated and synthesized to determine the diverse roles of teachers including: providing effective education, leading students to a better life, empowering parents, developing schools, and developing communities. These diverse roles may positively affect individual, family, and community or environmental circumstances where children are "at-risk". And these can assist children to become valued citizens for their communities and country. Taking these diverse roles as a platform, diverse knowledge, skills, and values are established, and a diverse teacher education framework is identified to better prepare pre-service teachers to work successfully in the remote schools located close to the Thai-Burmese border. Moreover, certain recommendations for policies on teacher education curricula, primary education, staff development, and assessment in Thailand, for Rajabhat Universities, are proposed as well.
-
ItemImplementation of recommended language teaching methods in Rajabhat primary schools : Thai teachers' perceptions of the new basic curriculum( 2008)This study is concerned with primary education reform at schools attached to Rajabhat Universities. A set of twelve language teaching approaches (methods) is suggested in the Thai Teacher Handbook for Foreign Language Teachers, as part of the reform in language teaching and learning at primary level. The approaches aim to develop the ability of language use for communication. Rajabhat schools are in the ideal position for the change implementation, due to schools' location on university campuses and administrative structures under the universities. The aim of the study was to probe the teachers' understanding and practice of the new approaches. Two research questions guided the study: 1 To what degree the teachers comprehend the suggested language teaching methods? 2 What are the teachers' perceptions of how they implement the suggested language teaching methods in classrooms? A mixed research method was employed to answer these questions. Questionnaires and semi-structured interviews were used for data collection. The two data sets are brought together by comparing and contrasting the findings, providing triangulation to enrich result interpretation. Data analysis reveals that the teachers have incorporated the suggested language teaching approaches and methods into classroom activities. They are willing to learn how the suggested approaches could be transformed into activities. However, activities students engaged in appeared to emphasize coverage of linguistic elements of target language and analysis of grammatical relationships of the elements. The emphasis on linguistics, rather than development of the ability to relate language form for functional use, derives from unclear understanding of the proposed approaches. Study findings provide evidence that knowledge and skill development for the usage of the methodological concepts of the suggested approaches could lead to the sustained change in language teaching and learning.
-
ItemA study of the market orientation and marketing management in Rajabhat institutes in Thailand( 2005)The purpose of this study was to investigate the market orientation and marketing management of the administrators of four Rajabhat Institutes in Thailand, and also the style of leadership they employed in order to bring about effective change, arising from the establishment of a new Education Act, in their institutes. A case study method was used in order to determine how administrators of Rajabhat Institutes employ market-centred leadership to make effective change in marketing and how, in practice, administrators of Rajabhat Institutes implement their marketing concepts. A modified version of Drysdale's (2001) model of market-centred leadership was employed. This involved a consideration of two dimensions: market orientation and marketing management. The case studies revealed that, in the implementation of marketing concepts, the administrators demonstrated varying levels of responding to, and valuing, the importance of market-centred leadership which, in turn, invoked a various degrees of attitude change on the part of administrators. The extent of attitude to change on the part of institutes and administrators within each institute was graded as either high, medium or low. Variation between institutions indicated one Rajabhat Institute was high, two Rajabhat Institutes were medium and one Rajabhat Institute was low. For the administrators within these institutes: all Presidents were rated high; senior administrators varied between high (one), medium (two) and low (one). This suggests that a high level of responding and valuing of market-centred leadership is required if major educational reform is to be successfully implemented.
-
ItemCommunicative activities for developing English speaking proficiency in Thailand( 2005)This study investigated the effectiveness of the two communicative activities, Information-gap and Role-play, in developing students' speaking proficiency in an English as a Foreign Language (EFL) classroom. It also provides an understanding of the dynamics of the learning process in the language classroom which resulted in students' progress in speaking. The study comprises a piece of reflective practice in the teacher-researcher's own practice, drawing on an integrated set of qualitative methods to gather data from all involved. This study was conducted in a normal language classroom of thirty-eight students in Thailand, and nine participants were targetted: 3 High, 3 Medium and 3 Low, based on language proficiency levels. Three research questions guided the study: (1) Can Thai students be assisted to use communicative activities, Information-gap and Role-play so as to overcome their weaknesses in speaking English?, (2) What most assists in the creation of meaningful situations?, and (3) What assists with the breaking down of affective barriers to participating in the two communicative activities? Data were gathered from four sources: Speaking Tests as Pretest and. Posttest, student diaries, teacher's journal and ethnographic interviews. The Speaking Test . used as both Pretest and Posttest was analysed by using mean, standard deviation and t-test Dependent measures to test the difference in students' English speaking proficiency between before and after the two communicative activities program. Results of this study reveal that using the two communicative activities, as an: innovative program had a significant impact on improving EFL students' speaking proficiency. Meaningful situations were established using pairwork and group work, both important features of Communicative Language Teaching in the language classroom. This novel classroom organisation created a positive atmosphere,. reducing affective barriers to language learning. Moreover, the dynamic classroom initiated a cycle of student progress in the language learning process which formed the basis of their progress in speaking English competently. Quantitative and qualitative data mutually supported the positive conclusions of the study. Based on the findings, recommendations have been provided for teachers in arranging the EFL speaking classroom. The Information-gap and the Role-play, are highly recommended as effective methods in the improvement of students' speaking proficiency. Additionally, this study attempts to conceptually establish a hierarchy in the relationship of these two activities that will be the most effective for assisting EFL learners in Thailand, at least, to achieve proficiency in spoken English. This study also proposes key factors that teachers must take into account in their attempt to achieve the goal of successfully teaching speaking skills in large EFL classrooms. In particular, it suggests - that when teaching materials designed for the two named activities are introduced to EFL teachers at all levels of education in Thailand, they may achieve success. There is a great deal the teacher must and can do to bring about success in this field. These include designing the materials carefully and arranging the classroom in new and challenging ways, ways which are, nonetheless, compatible with the realities of modern Thailand. Most particularly the teacher must be able to support the learners in their initial endeavours, as they begin to work in very different ways to those they have been used to, within themselves about their own spoken English; in how they work with their friends and classmates; and, especially, in how they relate and work with their teacher. Encouraging them to get through the challenges this offers by taking the time to consciously reflect on what is going on, was shown to be one way this could be done successfully.
-
ItemCreating useful knowledge: a case study of policy development in e-learning at Chulalongkorn University Language Institute( 2004)This study develops and analyses a process related to online policy development in E-learning at Chulalongkorn University Language Institute. The study involved three identifiable phases. Firstly, phase one involved the preparation of a synthesis paper. It was designed to develop an evidence-based policy. This paper was developed from interviews of online experts as well as from a synthesis of related literature. In addition, change strategies and English language teaching approaches were explored. From the aforementioned, a list of benchmarks of best practice was compiled. Phase two involved the development of a policy. paper. It was designed to tailor a policy to meet the needs of Chulalongkorn University Language Institute, the organization and the staff that were responsible for implementing it. The benchmark findings from phase one were used as the basis for developing guidelines for the policy paper. The policy paper was also. designed to assist in gaining the commitment of administrators towards implementing the policy. In order to gain this commitment, Chulalongkorn University Language Institute , administrators were interviewed to find how they would implement the phase one benchmarks. Phase three involved the linkage of policy and implementation. It addressed the implementation of the policy in the teaching and learning managed by Chulalongkorn University Language Institute teaching staff. Chulalongkorn University Language Institute ajarns who had been involved in developing online courses were interviewed. One experienced ajarn was selected for an in-depth interview to probe the extent to which the benchmarks had been applied in existing Chulalongkorn University Language Institute online courses. The thesis describes and analyses an-innovatory process, a way to initiate and implement � policy in an organization. This,innovatory process provides a `rational' way of initiating policy in an organization. As a means of providing advice to those interested in effective policy development, the thesis provides a critical reflection on the process.
-
ItemAn investigation of language learning strategies in a Thai learning and teaching context( 2004)This study investigates the language learning strategy (LLS) use of 118 Thai student teachers as well as that of 10 teacher educators and explores the influence of various factors on the student teachers' strategy use. The Strategy Inventory for Language Learning (SILL) developed by Oxford (1990), was used to identify patterns of strategy use of student teachers and teacher educators. Semi-structured interviews were also conducted aiming at bringing out an in-depth explanation of student teachers' strategy use, and most importantly some information on their perceptions of the impact of various factors on their strategy choices. The major findings were that the reported frequency of strategy use by student teachers was moderate overall, while their teacher educators reported using strategies at a high level. However, student teachers and their teacher educators shared similar patterns in strategy use, whereby meta-cognitive, social and compensation categories appeared to be popular among both groups. It was also found that apart from English proficiency, the use of LLSs was also related closely to the learner's beliefs and motivation and a variety of important variables, such as teaching methods,. assessment systems, and curriculum materials. These findings provide evidence that Thai student teachers need to further develop language learning strategies, especially cognitive and memory strategies, to facilitate their learning. There is an urgent need for strategy training in Thai teacher education in order to encourage Thai student teachers to develop necessary learning strategies or learning tools, which are highly significant in successful language learning in this fast changing world. These student teachers are agents of change in schools. With a better knowledge of language learning strategies, these young teachers are in a position to bring about a change in English education in Thailand, and thus help the Thai government to implement its education policies more successfully.
-
ItemLeadership for academic program administration in Rajabhat Institutes by using Bolman and Deal's framing approach( 2005)The purpose of this research was to investigate the leadership of deans and heads of programs in implementing the policy of academic program administration in Rajabhat Institutes. In particular, the study focused on the leaders' approach within a theoretical framework designed by two authors: Bolman and Deal. They identify four major characteristics and expected functions of leaders within four frames: the structural, the human resource, the political, and the symbolic. The main functions for each frame were to make people accept the change, to practice the policy, to disseminate the practice, to follow up the practice and to revise the practice. A qualitative approach was used to investigate the leaders' approach in implementing the new policy. The four characteristics of leadership in each frame were used to design questions to interview the deans and the heads of programs in order to investigate how they perceived their leadership in implementing the new academic program administration. Further, members of faculties (lecturers) were interviewed, utilising another set of questions, in order to discover their perspectives of the leadership of their deans and heads of programs. A Raj abhat Institute in the central part of Thailand was selected as a case study institute. A sample of deans, heads of programs, and lecturers participated in the study. Four deans were purposively selected. Eight heads of programs and eight lecturers were selected by simple random sampling from the four faculties. All documents related to the academic program administration were used in the study in order to supplement and compare this information with the interview data. The analysis has been presented in descriptive forms with tables. Results of the study revealed that both deans and heads of programs implemented the policy of the academic program administration with almost all the expected functions through the four frames, except for one expected function in the political frame - assess the distribution of power and interest. For the activities under each function in each frame, deans and heads of programs performed the first two activities the most often - to make people accept the change and to practise the change. The last three activities - to disseminate the practice, to follow up the practice, and to revise the practice, seldom occurred. Findings can be drawn to generate three models designed by the researcher to enhance effectiveness and efficiency of the program academic administration. These are a model for an implementation of the APA, a model for a leadership preparation for deans and heads of programs, and a model for an implementation preparation. Further research could investigate: (a) how new leaders could be developed and prepared to work within the system; (b) how leaders could be empowered to implement change; (c) how the structure of APA compares to a departmental structure; and (d) how the institute could contribute to the assessment process and link this to quality assurance.
-
ItemThe impact of content-based instruction on the teaching of English to first-year students of a provincial secondary school in Thailand( 2008)English as an international language has been recognized as important to Thailand's economic development. Because of the persistent problems in English education in Thai school, particularly students' inadequate use of English to communicate orally and the need for a capacity to use English professionally and for higher education, significant reform of the learning/teaching process in schools is needed. Because of the gap between the theoretical teaching pedagogy and its applicability in real school contexts, many Thai teachers of English find it hard to adopt the CLT approach promoted. by the Ministry of Education. In addition, as the register of English taught in school is typically an everyday one, college students find it hard to de�l with their specialized academic English. It seems necessary that academic English be promoted at lower educational levels. Content-based instruction (CBI) is proposed as a form of teaching English communicatively and an opportunity for young Thai students to access to academic English. A science-based CBI course implemented for a group of highly motivated M l students at a provincial secondary school in Thailand enabled. the action researcher team to gain an understanding of CBI and its applicability in the research context. The course syllabus emphasized the use of the students' background knowledge in both science and English, and the science content helped the students to interact meaningfully. Consequently, the students' academic English oral skills improved as the analysis of the data gained from the research participants' reflections and the classroom discourse revealed, and as measured by the attitudinal questionnaire and the interview test. It is recommended that an action research process be initiated to help Thai teachers overcome the challenges of implementing a science-based CBI course, and that a science-based CBI course be distinctively recognized and promoted by the Ministry of Education as a means to advance learning/teaching English communicatively and therefore to boost its education reform policy.