Faculty of Education - Theses
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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.
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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.
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ItemSchool-industry partnership : a clarification evaluation case study( 2002)School-industry programs are a rapidly growing aspect of vocational education in Australia. This study examined one of these programs. It sought to identify factors that led to the establishment of the program; the essential operational components within the program; and how the program advanced vocational education and training in the community in which it was located. Clarification evaluation was used as the investigation approach. Data were collected from documentary evidence and interviews with key program stakeholders (employers, teachers, training providers, and program staff). The investigation identified a number of key elements that were fundamental to its successful establishment. These were: shared common purpose to address local youth unemployment and industry skill shortages; and people that had the will and capacity to bring about structural change: External enabling factors were also important in establishing the program. These were: timely government funding; and visionary education authority personnel who facilitated the convergence of stakeholder groups. The study also showed that there were clearly identifiable factors that underpinned the program's operation. These were: good strategic and business planning processes; negotiating workplacements with employers and courses with training providers on behalf of local schools; running induction and skills programs to increase students' work readiness; supporting teachers to integrate workplace learning into the curriculum; supporting workplace supervisors to mentor students; and linking the school-industry program to complementary employment placement programs. Finally, the study demonstrated that if certain conditions are met in industry and schools, school-industry programs could advance vocational education and training in their local communities. These conditions are concerned with the state of the local economy, community identity, willingness to contribute education and training of young people (industry); and schools' demonstrated commitment to vocational education and training through resource allocation and flexible timetable structures. The findings of this study have the potential to influence the design and development of future school-industry programs in Australia. A framework is presented, along with a series of cogent recommendations. These should assist government, employers, schools and program managers to better design and implement school-industry programs that produce high levels of practical skills and knowledge in young people that enhance their employability and life chances.
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ItemTeachers' use of ICT in the secondary school: investigating the impact of change on teachers' use of ICT( 2007)This thesis investigates the impact of four initiatives (the provision of a desktop computer, the change of operating systems from Windows to Linux, the compulsory use of a Learning Management System (LMS) and the implementation of professional development) on the use of Information Communications Technologies (ICT) as perceived by secondary teachers at an independent school in Melbourne's East. A mix of qualitative and quantitative data were gathered for this case study by surveying the secondary teaching staff, interviewing six teachers and two key leaders of ICT, and analysing documentation such as computer bookings and school policy records. These data were analysed and compared to that of wider local, national and international research and the following five findings were evident: 1. Evidence was found of an overall increase in the use of ICT since the four initiatives were implemented; 2. Less than half (44%) of the teachers surveyed perceived that there was an improvement in the quality of their use of ICT as a result of the changes, the majority (52%) perceived that no change had occurred for them with 4% claiming that the quality of their use of ICT had actually decreased as a result of changes; 3. At least one of the teachers interviewed demonstrated some profound improvements in their use of ICT as a result of the four initiatives; 4. The provision of personal access to a desktop computer was perceived by the teachers to have had the most impact on improving the use of ICT, followed by the implementation of the LMS and the PD program; S. The change of operating systems from Windows to Linux was perceived by the majority of teachers as a having a negative influence on their use and development of ICT. This study should be of benefit to school administrators who are in the processes of implementing initiatives to help improve the use of ICT by their teachers. It could also be helpful for teachers who are wanting to develop their professional attributes in relation to the use of ICT and make ICT a more effective tool in the teaching and learning process.