Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Development and evaluation of curriculum'

Curriculum development and change poses a range of challenges with regard to curriculum role teachers are to play when such a change takes place. The purpose of this study was to investigate the curriculum development role of teachers as key agents in curriculum change. In evaluating the curriculum development role of teachers as key agents of change, it was imperative to look at the curriculum development role with regard to the development phases and the seven roles as outlined in the Revised National Curriculum Statement and it became evident that there was a need to make certain as to whether teachers were empowered for their curriculum development role by looking at their level of empowerment. This investigation was prompted by school teachers who were and are de–motivated and lack direction as to what their actual role is in curriculum development for the changing curriculum in South Africa is. The literature study established the importance of teacher development in the South African context. Curriculum development or change as variously defined, relates to teachers' knowledge, skills, attitudes and values in reaching the aim of teaching and learning. In investigating the problem at hand, it was imperative to look at the methodology that would best suit the problem. A qualitative approach was selected where focus group interviews were administered at four schools in the district. It was established that the role which teachers play as curriculum developers in the changing curriculum of South Africa is pivotal and that change cannot be successfully attained if teachers' roles are not clear and if teachers' development is not initiated before and during change process and curriculum development. This research therefore draws a conclusion that teacher involvement and development in curriculum development is imperative if South Africa is to realize its education goals.
Thesis (M.Ed.)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2011.

Early numeracy skills are a critical component of daily preschool instruction, according to the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM; 2002); however, there is variability in how mathematics-driven instruction is implemented in the preschool classroom (Graham, Nash, & Paul, 1997; Brown, Malfese, & Molfese, 2008). Research indicates that children from low income backgrounds who qualify for Head Start programs do not make comparable growth in early numeracy skill development when compared to children from higher SES levels (Puma, et. al., 2012). The objective of this dissertation was to evaluate a selected mathematics curriculum utilized by the Happy Faces Head Start1 program, after program data indicated that children’s mathematics achievement was below established targets (Happy Faces Head Start, 2012). Results indicated that the curriculum, Mathematics: A Creative Curriculum Approach, which was implemented in rural Head Start classrooms did not show significant gains in math skills compared to children in the control group.

The purpose of this study was to design a grammar curriculum that could help college age students in basic writing classes to identify and correct grammatical errors in their own writing. After reviewing literature in best practices in grammar instruction as well as other kinds of instructional best practices, the grammar curriculum, Effective MUGs (MUGs stands for mechanics, usage, and grammar), takes advantage of these best practices including sentence combining, sentence revision, sentence creation, grammar in context, strategies instruction, and Bring Your Own Device (BYOD). The study was designed to measure how effective the grammar curriculum was (by examining student writing in essays as well as grammar exercises), how students used tools in the curriculum (by examining results from cognition labs), and how students and instructors perceived the curriculum (through interviews). The data on student grammatical error from this study must be viewed with reservations because of the lack of statistical significance. The most significant findings were qualitative and offered insight into the strengths of the Effective MUGs curriculum as well as which aspects that need revision. Both students and instructors thought that the gradual release of strategies instruction was one of the most effective tools and they both enjoyed using BYOD in conjunction with Google Docs. Students were most challenged by subject-verb identification and feeling confident about use of unfamiliar sentence elements; instructor interviews confirmed these student challenges. The data from the study will prompt revision to the curriculum as well as enhanced professional development.

Thesis (M.S. in Management) Naval Postgraduate School, June 1999.
"June 1999". Thesis advisor(s): Alice M. Crawford, Gail Fann Thomas. Includes bibliographical references (p. 87). Also available online.

Thesis (D. Min.)--Columbia Biblical Seminary and Graduate School of Missions, Columbia, S.C., 1991.
Abstract. Includes copy of curriculum, "To know him and to make him known." Includes bibliographical references.

The aim of this thesis is to extend sport career transition knowledge by developing and evaluating a psycho-educational curriculum for sport career transition practitioners. Study 1 provides an extensive overview of organisational intervention programmes for sport career transition, as well as of training and development programmes for sport career transition practitioners from 19 countries worldwide. The purpose of Study 1 was to examine the following five features of sport career transition organisational intervention programmes and training and development programmes for sport career transition practitioners: 1) At the government level, which organisation is responsible for the delivery of sport career transition organisational intervention programmes? 2) What is the typical strategy of sport career transition organisational intervention programmes? 3) Which activities and events are included in sport career transition organisational intervention programmes? 4) Who is responsible for the delivery of sport career transition organisational intervention programmes? and 5) Do sporting organisations have training and development programmes for sport career transition practitioners? Findings from Study 1 were used to inform Study 2 and to supplement the literature review. According to the literature, training and development programmes for sport career transition practitioners remain scarce, while the number of sport career transition organisational intervention programmes is gradually increasing. The purpose of Study 2 was to develop and evaluate a novel psycho-educational curriculum for sport career transition practitioners. There were three stages of development and evaluation: (1) content development, (2) curriculum design and (3) curriculum evaluation. To achieve the goal of Study 2, a focus group and a two-round Delphi method were implemented. The final version of the psycho-educational curriculum is presented in Chapter 5. The purpose of Study 3 was to test a key aspect of the psycho-educational curriculum developed in Study 2 concerning 38 competences of sport career transition practitioners. A curriculum package consisting in the key parts from the overall curriculum was developed for Study 3. The findings revealed that the curriculum package positively affected the confidence of the study participants in 38 competences concerning sport career transition. This demonstrates that the curriculum is effective for the development of sport career transition practitioners, as the study participants exhibited greater confidence on all four factorsDual Career Transition Management, Skill Transfer, Social Support, and Career Planningwhen completing the curriculum package. The discussion in Chapter 7 focuses on both the theoretical and practical implications of the research, limitations and future research directions. In conclusion, the findings presented here deepen the knowledge of sport career transition in the areas of organisational intervention programmes for high performance athletes and training and development programmes for sport career transition practitioners. In addition, a novel psycho-educational curriculum for sport career transition practitioners is developed and evaluated.

Thesis (MEd )--Stellenbosch University, 2011.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This thesis is an interpretive formative evaluation of a Professional Development Programme in Environmental Education. The specific aim of the study was to evaluate the extent to which the programme has enabled professional development of teachers; the degree to which the processes of this specific Professional Development Programme (PDP) has enabled implementation and the nature and the amount of take- up of the PDP processes. The data for this research were generated through semi structured interviews, focus group discussions and observations of teachers‘ projects. Thematic analysis was used as a method of data analysis. Constructivist, formative evaluation informed the epistemology and ontological perspectives that guided data analysis and interpretation and discussions that were made in this research. Data indicate that professional development programmes involving various stakeholders need to be well controlled and co-ordinated. Communication and motivation need to be integrated into the PD programme by the leadership. The Professional Development Programme was done in isolation and lacked a deep epistemological and ontological grounding, showing minimal research in the process therefore, the communication and motivation need to be integrated into the PD programme by the leadership. Department of Education officials indicated that they were not involved in the planning stage and fulfilled more of a management and co-ordination role. They were not able to monitor the process because they were not informed or assisted to develop a monitoring tool and besides their workload prohibited them from doing so. Teachers reflected various dimensions of take-up from the programme but they were not able to realize the action project (except in two schools). Teachers expressed difficulties in implementing the programme because of full schedules and curriculum commitments in school programmes. This research has presented the sentiments of the respondents (participants) in this PDP and has come to the conclusion that this Professional Development Programme has potential and improving aspects of it (see chapter 6) will go a long way towards improving the sustainability of this programme, and improving the quality of teachers that are trained in this kind of programme and even beyond. The PDP has enabled professional development in many ways (See chapter 4 on take-up). However, monitoring and implementation came out clear as those aspects of professional development in the programme that require much attention if the programme is to improve and become more sustainable.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie tesis behels 'n verklarende, formatiewe evaluering van 'n Professionele ontwikkelingsprogram in Omgewingsonderwys. Die hoofdoel van die studie was om die mate waarin die program onderwysers in staat gestel het om professioneel te ontwikkel, te evalueer insluitende die mate waarin die prosesse van die spesifieke Professionele Ontwikkelings Program(POP), implementering in staat gestel het, asook die aard en hoeveelheid opnames van die POP-prosesse. Die data van die navorsing is verkry deur semi gestruktureerde onderhoude, fokusgroep besprekings en waarnemings van onderwysers se projekte. Tematiese analise is as metode van die data analise gebruik. Konstruktivistiese-, formatiewe evaluering het die Epistemologiese en Ontologiese perspektiewe bekend gestel wat data analise en interpretasies en besprekings wat tydens die navorsing gemaak is, gelei het. Data dui daarop dat Professionele ontwikkelingsprogramme wat verskeie belanghebbendes insluit, goed beheer en gekoördineer moet wees. Kommunikasie en motivering moet ingesluit word in die POP-program deur die leiers. Die Professionele ontwikkelingsprogram is in isolasie uitgevoer en het 'n aansienlike gebrek aan Epistemologiese en Ontologiese begronding gewys wat minimale navorsing in die proses getoon het. Kurrikulum Adviseurs het aangedui dat hulle nie betrokke was vanaf die beplanningstadium nie en dat hulle ‘n bestuur en koördineringsrol vertolk het. Hulle was nie in staat gewees om die proses te monitor nie, aangesien hulle nie ingelig of gehelp is in die ontwikkeling van 'n moniteringsinstrument nie, wyl hul werklading hulle ook verhoed het om dit te doen. Onderwysers het verskeie dimensies van opnames vanuit die program getoon maar kon nie die aksie projek laat realiseer nie (behalwe in twee skole). Onderwysers het probleme in die implementering van die program getoon weens vol programme en kurrikulum verpligtinge binne die skool programme. Hierdie navorsing het deur om die sentimente van die respondente (deelnemers) in die POP te vertoon, tot die gevolgtrekking gekom dat hierdie professionele ontwikkelingsprogram die vermoë het en met die verbetering van sekere aspekte daarvan (sien hoofstuk 6), ver sal gaan in die verbetering van volhoubaarheid van die program, en deur die verbetering van die huidige onderwysers se kwaliteit wat opgelei is in hierdie program. Die POP het in baie opsigte professionele ontwikkeling tot gevolg gehad (sien hoofstuk 4 oor opnames). Nietemin het monitering en implementering duidelik na vore gekom as professionele ontwikkelings aspekte,wat indien nie genoegsame aandag verkry, die program geweldig kan laat misluk.

The purpose of writing An Evaluation of The Journey Within: Soul Care in the African American Context to implement an eight week curriculum of intentional and experiential practice of spiritual formation/soul care to determine the impact of the Journey Within: Soul Care on a Christian believer’s emotional health and spiritual maturity in the African American context. (Abstract shortened by ProQuest.)

Thesis (PhD (Curriculum Studies))--University of Stellenbosch, 2010.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: While nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) have existed for several hundred years, their recent surge was largely fueled by several key factors. Firstly, government corruption caused donor agencies to see NGOs as safer investments for their aid portfolios. Secondly, the end of the Cold War fostered growth in development in former Soviet satellite nations. Thirdly, the United Nation‘s (UN) establishment of the Millennium Development Goals galvanized the globe to address indicators critical to combating extreme poverty. Vast amounts of charitable capital combined with donors‘ increasing expectations of performance to spark serious interest in the topics of NGO efficiency, accountability and effectiveness. These topics are foundational to NGO mission accomplishment and have contributed to a global expansion of academic programs in NGO management. The examination of a forerunner of NGO management education helped address the void of scholarship concerning NGO-related academic program effectiveness. The economic development program at Eastern University (US) was created in 1984 as one of the world‘s first MBA programs designed to train entrepreneurs for service to distressed communities. The program quickly grew to over one hundred students and then foundered due to frequent personnel transition, curricular change, mission drift and a lack of investment in relational marketing and outreach. This prompted an administrative intervention in 2002. In 2007, five years into the economic development program‘s reinvention process, a qualitative evaluation determined whether all the essential elements of the program were in place and operating in accordance with the plans put forth in 2002. The knowledge generated by this research will strengthen institutions that serve NGOs and extend the abilities of NGO leaders to fulfill their missions. The following specific aims were established and achieved. Firstly, an analysis of the factors contributing to the management challenges facing the leaders of international NGOs was presented. Secondly, a qualitative evaluation of an international graduate economic development program for NGO leaders using archival analysis verified through iv interviews and focus groups assessed the effectiveness of the 2002 intervention in achieving planned objectives. Thirdly, the research also generated conclusions and recommendations on theoretical, practical and policy-related issues, particularly regarding matters of academic program leadership, curricular development, planning, evaluation, marketing and the distinctive requirements of international programs containing distance delivery components. Fourthly, the research enriched the scholarly conversation in the NGO and academic communities in substantive ways, including two presentations at international conferences and publication in a peer-reviewed journal. Theoretical, practical and policy conclusions were generated as research outcomes and included a theoretical framework for the implementation and evaluation of an international graduate economic development MBA for NGO leaders. The conclusions generated four recommendations for the host institution and others with similar missions and aspirations. The recommendations stated that these kinds of programs should: commit to the discipline of multi-year planning and evaluation, appoint well-qualified faculty to lead them, implement and resource relationship-based marketing plans that engage program alumni, and excel at delivering cross-cultural, highly accessible learning
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Nieregeringsorganisasies (NRO‘s) bestaan al vir baie honderde jare. In die onlangse verlede is die belangrikheid en groei daarvan deur verskeie faktore aangevuur. Ten eerste het skenkerorganisasies nieregeringsorganisasies toenemend begin beskou as veiliger beleggers vir hulle hulpfondse as die toenemende korrupsie van regerings. Tweedens het die einde van die Koue Oorlog die groei en ontwikkeling van vorige Sowjet- satellietstate gestimuleer. Derdens het die Verenigde Volkeorganisasie (VVO) met die daarstelling van die milleniumontwikkelingsdoelstellings die wêreld saamgesnoer in hulle pogings om armoede te beveg. Groot bedrae welsynskapitaal en die daarmee gepaardgaande hoër prestasieverwagtinge van skenkers het daartoe bygedra dat daar groter belangstelling was in die effektiwiteit, doeltreffendheid en toerekenbaarheid van nieregeringsorganisasies. Laasgenoemde drie temas is fundamenteel tot die uitlewing van nieregeringsorganisasies se missies en dit het daartoe bygedra dat daar ‘n wêreldwye toename in akademiese programme oor die leierskap en bestuur van nieregeringsorganisasies was. Navorsing oor een van die pioniers op die gebied van leierskap en bestuursopleiding vir nie-regeringsorganisasies het daartoe bygedra om hierdie leemte in die akademieskap van nie-regeringsorganisasies se programeffektiwiteit te oorbrug. Die ekonomiese ontwikkelings-program aan die Eastern University in die VSA is in 1984 as een van die wêreld se eerste MBA-programme wat ontwerp is om entrepreneurs vir dienslewering aan benadeelde gemeenskappe op te lei, in die lewe geroep. Die program was baie gewild en het vinnig gegroei en gou was daar meer as ‘n honderd ingeskrewe studente. As gevolg van verskeie faktore, waaronder gereelde personeel- en leierskapwisseling, kurrikulumwysigings, missieverskuiwing (mission drift) en onvoldoende investering in bemarking en uitreikprogramme, het die program se gewildheid afgeneem. Hierdie afname in die gewildheid van die program het inmenging/intervensie deur die universiteitsbestuur in 2002 genoodsaak. In 2007,vyf jaar nadat die universiteitsbestuur die intervensie geïnisieer het, is deur middel van ‘n kwalitatiewe evaluering vasgestel of al die noodsaaklike elemente van die program toegepas is volgens die intervensieprogram wat in 2002 geïnisieer is. Die kennis wat deur hierdie navorsing gegenereer is, sal vi universiteite en instellings wat nieregeringsorganisasies ondersteun, versterk en die leiers van nieregeringsorganisasies in staat stel om hulle missies uit te leef. Verskeie doelstellings is met die navorsing nagestreef en bereik. Eerstens is die faktore wat bydra tot die uitdagings vir die leierskap van internasionale nieregeringsorganisasies geanaliseer en aangebied. Tweedens is ‘n kwalitatiewe evaluering van ‘n internasionale nagraadse ekonomiese ontwikkelingsprogram uitgevoer. Argivale materiaal is geanaliseer en, gerugsteun deur inligting wat verkry is uit onderhoude en fokusgroepe, is die effektiwiteit van die 2002-intervensie bepaal. Derdens is teoretiese, praktiese en beleidsgevolgtrekkings en aanbevelings gegenereer. Hierdie gevolgtrekkings en aanbevelings is veral toegespits op leierskap vir akademiese programme, kurrikulumontwikkeling, beplanning, evaluering, bemarking en die eiesoortige eise wat afstandsonderrigprogramme stel. Vierdens het die navorsing die akademiese gesprek en die akademiese en nieregeringsorganisasies op verskeie betekenisvolle maniere verryk. Onder andere is twee aanbiedinge by internasionale konferensies gedoen en is ‘n artikel in ‘n eweknie-beoordeelde tydskrif gepubliseer. Teoretiese, praktiese en beleidsgevolgtrekkings is daargestel en dit sluit onder andere ‘n teoretiese raamwerk vir die implementering en evaluering van ‘n internasionale MBA- nagraadse ekonomiese ontwikkelingsprogram vir leiers van nieregeringsorganisasies in. Die gevolgtrekkings het gelei tot vier aanbevelings vir die gasheerinstelling en ander instellings met soortgelyke missies en aspirasies. Die aanbevelings sluit onder andere in dat instellings wat soortgelyke programme aanbied, hulle moet verbind tot multijaarbeplanning en -evaluering, dat hulle bekwame akademici as leiers moet aanstel, dat hulle brongebaseerde bemarkingsplanne moet implementeer en dat hulle akademiese personeel moet aanstel wat besonder goed toegerus is in die aanbieding van kruiskulturele toeganklike leerprogramme.

Health curriculum traditionally (re)produces obesity discourse, a fusion of biomedical and moral perspectives of weight and fat. This weight-centered approach to bodies may perpetuate weight stigmatization, indirectly supports a culture of thinness, and contradicts other health messages concerning bodies. A Health At Every Size® (HAES®) approach is an alternative, multidimensional health-centered approach that can reconcile the incongruent messages in obesity and eating disorder discourses and may reduce weight stigmatization. The purpose of this study was to develop and evaluate a college personal health curriculum module to promote healthy bodies of all sizes. Discourse positions of teaching assistants were explored through interviews and provided an understanding of their values and teaching methods regarding weight and health. A HAES®-based curriculum module was developed for college personal health classes at a Midwestern university. Quasi-experimental design was used to compare attitudes toward HAES® principles among students who received the alternative, HAES®-based curriculum module versus those receiving a traditional weight management curriculum. Pre- and posttest attitudes of students and teaching assistants were assessed using the Health and Weight Attitudes Scale developed for this study. Teaching assistants provided evaluation of the HAES® module in a focus group. While teaching assistants' discourse positions varied, most used obesity discourse to talk and teach about bodies and weight. Alternative discourses were most common when teaching assistants discussed eating disorders or body image. Students' attitudes at pre-test were slightly positive and did not differ significantly between comparison and intervention groups. Intervention group students' attitudes were significantly more positive than comparison group students' attitudes at posttest. Intervention group teaching assistants reported primarily positive experiences with the module. Teaching assistants rely primarily on obesity discourse to teach about weight and bodies but are receptive and positive when offered an alternative method. A HAES® curriculum module can increase positive attitudes of students and teaching assistants toward promotion of size acceptance and multidimensional health for people of all sizes.

This research study involved examination of the quality of globalized character-based education in Missouri and the reasons secondary public schools have been slow to adopt globalized educational programs such as the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP). This established programme has been the standard-bearer across the globe during the last 40 years and continues to promote the evolution of new globalized educational programs (IBO, 2017c). The International Baccalaureate (IB) Programme is now in 3,662 schools worldwide with 1,465 schools located in the United States (International Baccalaureate Organization [IBO], 2015b), but only 11 of the 573 Missouri public secondary schools have instituted a working IBDP (IBO, 2017c). A quantitative research study was conducted using a survey based on global characteristics as established by the IB Learner Profile. Data were collected from four specific groups within Missouri: 103 students currently enrolled in an IB Diploma School, 10 IB coordinators, 16 admissions directors of post-secondary institutions that offer IB credit, and 86 human resources directors at Missouri-based globalized businesses. These groups were chosen because of their relationship with the IB Learner Profile characteristics as demonstrated by IB Diploma candidates and the hiring process of employees in the 21st-century workplace. The further a student progresses educationally, the less often evaluators see the criteria of globalized learners being followed. The weaknesses revealed through this study can help drive the evolution and possible expansion of more globalized character-based programs in secondary schools in Missouri.

This study sought to address the challenge of interesting university professors in adopting more deliberate and integrated approaches to course design through a multi-case study of five professors in the liberal arts at a top-tier research university. Professors watched video-recorded interviews with five of their own past students who were graduates of the university. The researcher interviewed the professors before and after they viewed the alumni feedback. Professors were asked to reflect on what most surprised and concerned them in the interviews and if and how they were inclined or disinclined to alter their courses. Professors were also asked to compare feedback from alumni to feedback from students. Central findings related to the research questions were that: (a) professors’ views of their course and course design changed after receiving feedback from their alumni; (b) professors perceived a need to alter their course design when they received surprising and concerning feedback from alumni; (c) but, feedback needed to be sufficiently concerning for professors to be inclined to alter their course designs, and (d) even then, several factors disinclined professors to follow through on changes. These factors opposing change include professors’ recollections of their college experiences, lack of pedagogical and course design knowledge, and university disincentives to focus on teaching. Professors appreciated hearing from the alumni because alumni had longer-term and more real world perspective than current students and were unconcerned about grades. Professors uniformly disliked, and to a great extent disregarded, student feedback from course evaluations because surveys are anonymous and lack context about who is making a comment and why. In contrast, the alumni interviews allowed professors to see and hear personalized feedback that provided context for which individual said what. Several additional findings emerged from the research. These were: (a) professors developed courses based on limited understanding of what students retained in a course; (b) professors relied considerably on their own educational experiences and on trial and error in creating courses and in their teaching; and (c) professors’ dislike of course evaluations made them skeptical of student feedback. These findings have potential significance for professors, faculty developers, universities, and students because they suggest an avenue for impacting faculty attitudes about their course design by planting seeds of curiosity about the link between design and course impact. Findings also support the use of alumni interviews as a tool for collecting feedback and existing evidence that faculty development efforts are best when they are personal, context-specific, and endure over time. Because this was a small exploratory study, repeating the alumni interview approach with more faculty and alumni is recommended.

This MA project consists of the implementation and evaluation of the effectiveness of intended improvements to the TESOL minor internship program at Brigham Young University (BYU). The majority of changes implemented and evaluated in this study were suggested by Marisa Ontiveros in her 2010 MA thesis, An Evaluation of the Learning Outcomes and Curricular Organization of the Brigham Young University Undergraduate TESOL Internships Course. The present report summarizes relevant literature that led to the current project, including a discussion of the importance of internships in general, information regarding the significance of TESOL internships, and a summary of the BYU TESOL internship program, with descriptions of past studies that have focused on it. Specific curricular changes central to this study are then outlined, which consist of the implementation of new learning outcomes, the alteration of internship prerequisites, the addition and alteration of several course components, and the requirement that international interns participate in internship class sessions. Methods employed to implement and evaluate these changes are also discussed. Evaluation results are summarized, and implications and suggestions for future work are detailed.

The efficacy of a staff training procedure comprised of video review, role play, and verbal feedback to train three paraprofessionals who worked with adults with intellectual disabilities at an adult day center was evaluated. The paraprofessionals were trained to conduct a brief 5-min free operant preference assessment following a 10-step task analysis within the context of the staff training procedure. Results showed that all three paraprofessionals were able to accurately implement a free operant preference assessment with clients at the adult day center following training. Training was also shown to be time efficient, only requiring 3 to 7 training sessions, with each session lasting approximately 10 minutes in length, including set up of materials.

Evaluation capacity development (ECD) has been acknowledged as a system of processes to help organizations achieve sustainable evaluation practice. Examining the existing evaluation capacity of an organization before starting an ECD process is necessary and will increase the possibilities of success, determined by the establishment or strengthening of an evaluation system into the organization. In response to this need, this study involved the designing of the Organizational Readiness for Evaluation Capacity Development (ORECD) checklist and its initial validation, using a mixed method research design. The study was conducted in four phases, including: (a) the design of the ORECD checklist based on a review of the literature; (b) a review of the ORECD checklist by five experts to obtain face and content validity evidences, with emphasis on relevance and clarity of the items and how well the items fit the corresponding component; (c) a pretesting about the appropriateness of the wording of the items and format of the ORECD checklist by a sample of doctoral graduate students with formal training in evaluation and professional evaluators; and (d) a field study with 32 nonprofit organizations to determine the utility and benefits of using the ORECD checklist and potential improvements to the instrument. This phase generated information about the psychometric properties as well as consequential validity evidence. Findings indicated that the ORECD checklist has great potential to determine the readiness of an organization to develop evaluation capacity, as demonstrated by the feedback received from various groups of participants, establishing face, content, and consequential validity. Results from the psychometric analysis showed correlations that, for the most part, suggested that the components are measuring aspects of the same construct. In addition, the alpha for most of the components supported the reliability of the ORECD checklist. The two components with alphas close to but below .70 required modifications in order to improve their reliability. Also, it was necessary to modify or reword some of the items. Ongoing efforts should provide information about how the changes made to the ORECD checklist are working and additional validity evidences as the one that can be obtained through factor analysis. This will allow the exploration of the underlying structure of the ORECD checklist and its components. It is expected that the ORECD checklist can be a contribution to the body of literature about ECD helping to address organizational readiness in order to support and sustain the development of evaluation capacity within organizations.

The purpose of this study was to analyze the general education faculty members’ perspectives on the internationalization of the general education curriculum in Mississippi community colleges. The participants in this study included all full-time instructors of general education courses at 2 of the 15 public community colleges in the state of Mississippi. The study used a survey Analysis of Faculty Perception: Factors Affecting the Internationalization of General Education Curriculum in Mississippi Community Colleges to examine factors that included a) importance of internationalization, b) institutional success with internationalization efforts and c) importance and existence of administrative support for internationalization. No studies were found that analyze nor investigate the importance of internationalizing the general education curriculum in Mississippi community colleges. Quantitative data were collected using Survey Monkey online instrument that was sent to full-time general education faculty members teaching at the 2 community colleges in the State of Mississippi. The data were analyzed using Kruskal-Wallis Analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Mann-Whitney U Test tables and descriptive statistics were reported.

Results showed that a large number of the educators recognized the need for a partner institution in another country. Many of them also recommended that there should be a designated administrative office to coordinate and support international education initiatives, and they also saw the need for their college to have a plan designed to increase international/global understanding among students and to have general education courses with an international/global focus available to all students. Some differences in perceptions were observed in the teachers’ perceptions of internationalization based on years worked in higher education, country of birth, gender, international experience, and level of education. The educators believed that internationalization activities on their campus was a positive movement towards expanding their offerings to students by helping to develop an educational environment where they can become more globally competitive and more professionally effective. Many of the educators in this study support the expansion of programs that support study abroad or student exchange programs.

Toerisme word vandag as een van die vinnig groeiende bedrywe in die wêreld gesien. 'n Probleem wat Suid-Afrika egter in die oë staar word saamgevat deur SAT (Suid-Afrika se Toerismeraad) wat beweer dat toerisme eerstens nie aan die publiek bekend gestel word nie en dat daar tweedens 'n toerisme-kultuur onder Suid- Afrikaners ontwikkel moet word. Die Witskrif oor Toerisme verklaar dat toerisme-opvoeding en opleiding een van die fundamentele pilare is in die ontwikkeling van nuwe verantwoordelike toerisme in Suid-Afrika. Toerisme-opvoeding kan dus 'n oplossing wees vir beide die bogenoemde probleme. Toerisme-opvoeding in Suid- Afrika speel ook 'n belangrike rol in die ondersteuning van toerismeontwikkeling en die versekering van deurlopende verskaffing van kwaliteit menslike hulpbronne om aan die oorweldigende vereistes van die bedryf te voldoen. 'n Analitiese ondersoek is geloods om 'n kurrikulum-evaluasiemodel vir toerisme op sekondêre vlak daar te stel. Die model is gebruik om die kurrikulum te evalueer en te bepaal wat die effektiwiteit van 'n toerisme-kurrikulum as toerismebewustheidsinstrument is, asook wat die invloed van die bewustheid op die toerisme-industrie sou wees. Uit die literatuurstudie wat gedoen is, het dit duidelik geword dat dit noodsaaklik was om eers die bestaande toerisme-kurrikulum te evalueer alvorens bepaal sou kon word of dit 'n doeltreffende toerismebewustheidsinstrument is. 'n Nuwe kurrikulum-evaluasie model is ontwerp wat 'n kombinasie was van die EPIK-model, oftewel Evaluerende Program vir lnnoverende Kurrikula, en die model van Zenger & Zenger vir kurrikulum beplanning. Die model is in die studie gebruik om die kurrikulum te evalueer en te bepaal hoe suksesvol die doelwitte en doelstellings van die kurrikulum bereik is. 'n Aantal opvoedingsverbeterings aangaande kurrikula-ontwerp, skoliere en opvoedkundiges se kwalifikasies en kennis, word bespreek. Drie vraelyste is ontwikkel, een vir leerders met en sonder toerisme as skoolvak, een vir ouers wie se kinders toerisme as skoolvak neem en die wat dit nie neem nie. Die derde vraelys is ontwikkel vir fasiliteerders wat die kurrikulum evalueer. Die vraelyste is gebruik om die gesindheid en bewustheid van toerisme-leerders teenoor die toerismebedryf te meet. Die verskil in bewustheid tussen leerders met en sonder toerisme word ondersoek en die invloede wat leerders het op die reispatrone van hulle ouers word gemeet. Statistieke is ontleed en weergegee deur middel van faktorbepaling asook beskrywende resultate. Die resultaat van die ondersoek het aangetoon dat die kurrikulum suksesvol is om bewustheid onder leerders te vestig. Die ondersoek het getoon dat 'n groot probleem die toerismeopvoeding in sekondêre skole in die gesig staar. Die sleutel dilemma kan beskryf word as die gebrek aan gekwalifiseerde kurrikulum-implementeerders en fasiliteerders sowel as die beperkte komponente van die toerismebedryf wat in die kurrikulum opgeneem is. Nog 'n bevinding uit die literatuur is dat daar min evalueringsmodelle beskikbaar is om kurrikulum-evaluering te doen en dat daar geen evaluasiemodel vir toerisme bestaan nie. In die breë is 'n evaluasiemodel daargestel om die toerisme-kurrikulum op sekondêre skoolvlak te evalueer en te bepaal of die kurrikulum 'n effektiewe toerismebewustheidsinstrument is.
Thesis (Ph.D. (Tourism))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2004.

The purpose of this project to was to 1) develop, 2) instruct, 3) evaluate, and 4) revise a 5^th-12^th grade fisheries conservation engineering outreach program entitled Smart Fishing and the Bering Sea (SFBS).

Fishery resources are important to Alaska and Alaskans, but present complex conservation challenges including user conflicts and concerns about unsustainable fishing practices. Increasing Alaska residents' environmental literacy will enhance natural resource management decisions regarding fisheries. The intent of the SFBS program is to introduce students to ecological and economical factors that drive conservation engineering in the Bering Sea pollock fishery. I instructed the SFBS program to 93 students from four different public and private institutions in Anchorage, Alaska. My observations and participants' pre- and post-program concept maps were used to evaluate the effectiveness of the SFBS curriculum. Participants gained content knowledge from this fishery outreach program about the Bering Sea and commercial fishing. Program evaluation analysis and results were used to revise the curriculum and make suggestions to SFBS stakeholders.

This qualitative single case study on backward design lesson planning experiences of teachers in a professional learning community focused on gaining a better understanding of collaborative planning of standards-based learning intentions, success criteria, assessments, and activities as performed by four participants meeting daily in one high school content area department. The backward design lesson planning model contains three stages, including development of standards-based learning objectives, learning objective-based assessments, and assessment criteria-based authentic learning activities. The research problem was informed by multiple selections from the body of literature in the field of education on backward design lesson planning, curriculum evaluation frameworks, and suggestions for a need to better understand collaborative planning, backward design curricula, professional development-informed planning and practice, and professional learning community interactions in designing curricula. The purpose of the study was to better understand how teachers develop standards-derived learning intentions, success criteria, assessments, and activities through the backward design lesson planning model. The conceptual framework was constructed from a synthesis of findings from quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods peer-reviewed research reports in the field of curriculum and teaching. Synthesized findings informed the structure and sections of the conceptual framework, supporting the purpose of the research in better understanding connections between components of traditional linear curriculum evaluation, the three stages of backward design, and the need to better understand interactions between professional development practice of new curriculum development initiatives, implementation of new initiatives in professional learning community lesson plan design, and teacher perceptions of planning lessons through the lens of backward design. Through observational field notes and open-ended questionnaires pertaining to the three stages of backward design lesson development, teacher actions observed during professional learning community meetings and experiences noted by teachers on questionnaire forms indicated that teachers utilized their common lesson planning time in deriving learning objectives from content area standards, generating formative assessments for ongoing feedback to inform teaching and learning, generating rubrics for clarity in the relationship between success criteria and the satisfying of learning objectives, and sequencing activities based on ability levels of individual learners so that challenges were scaffolded based on cognitive complexity, with the goal of all students meeting learning objectives. Potential impacts of study results include integration of backward design lesson planning into professional development programs and professional learning community curriculum development programs for alignment, clarity, and congruency between content area department standards, objectives, assessments, and activities. Recommendations for future research informed by minor themes uncovered during the study include a need for further study of teacher perceptions of standards-based grading practices.

The aim of the study is: (1) to investigate effects of new science and technology curriculum on 4th and 5th grade students&rsquo
achievement in terms of knowledge and understanding levels outcomes and higher order thinking skills, (2) to investigate effects of new science curriculum on the students&rsquo
attitudes towards science and (3) to examine teachers&rsquo
classroom activities in lessons. The study was conducted in three conveniently selected public elementary schools throughout Yenimahalle district of Ankara with a total of 302 4th and 5th grade students in 2004-2005 spring semester, two pilot schools implementing new science and technology curriculum were assigned to experimental group and one school applying the traditional science curriculum was assigned to control group. The researcher developed the measuring tools, Science Achievement Test for 4th grade, Science Achievement Test for 5th grade, Science Attitude Scale and Teachers&rsquo
Classroom Activities Scale. v The data were analyzed through multivariate analyses of variance (MANOVA). Results showed that the new science and technology curriculum made no difference on the fourth grade students&rsquo
knowledge and understanding level outcomes and higher order thinking skills. On the other hand, it was effective on the fifth grade students&rsquo
higher order thinking skills. The statistical analyses also showed that there were significant differences between the pilot and control group students&rsquo
attitudes towards science in terms of interest, anxiety, and self-efficacy sub-categories in favor of pilot groups. In addition, there were significant differences between the classroom activities of the teachers of pilot and control groups.

Aim of the Study: Personal Tutoring is a scholastic mechanism to aid and support students while on a demanding academic and clinically orientated pre-registration nursing programme. Personal Tutoring is widely used in nurse education programmes, although it is often poorly structured with a minimal evidence base and rarely evaluated. The increased numbers of student nurses has seen the role of the Personal Tutor as an intrinsic factor towards a positive student experience. Attrition is an important consideration, but this study aimed to enhance the staff and student roles through tutoring. Methods: this study, influenced by ethnography, adopted an action research methodology as it encapsulated a constant problem-solving technique. This involved the exploration of academic staff and student perceptions of a Personal Tutor's role within a School of Nursing and Midwifery. Staff and students contributed to semi-structured interviews after a series of focus groups. The focus group discussions utilised the nominal group technique to rank the key points of the posed questions. These priorities were the basis of five staff and five student follow-up semi-structured interviews; the transcripts were manually analysed for trends and complemented with the use of the computer software NVivo 7. This resulted in the development and implementation of School Personal Tutoring Guidelines based on 'good practice', along with supporting evidence from published research. A follow up focus group and questionnaire evaluated the staff's and students' experience of the guidelines, along with a more detailed analysis of two case studies using appreciative inquiry. Findings: the staff and student focus groups both agreed on areas of good and poor practice in relation to Personal Tutoring; there was also clear agreement about what did and did not contribute towards a supportive Personal Tutor commitment. The Personal Tutoring guidelines were formulated around eight key and shared areas of responsibility, which was a shift from previous approaches. The guidelines were implemented for staff and students through formal mechanisms and the Personal Tutor relationship became a central instrument for existing and future curriculum development and teaching and learning strategies. The follow-up evaluation continued to illustrate variable commitment from both staff and students towards Personal Tutoring, although the majority of the data indicated a positive influence on staff and student experience. Conclusions: the established guidelines form a standardised Personal Tutoring system based on academic staff and student perceptions of the tutoring role. This has subsequently been disseminated to all areas of the faculty, therefore utilising the cyclical ethos of action learning. Kolb's (1984) experiential learning cycle is used to illustrate the originality of this work and demonstrates how it has added to the existing body of knowledge on Personal Tutoring.

Within the confines of this study, the researcher investigated Project Lead the Way (PLTW) Engineering curriculum goals within Missouri high schools. The study measured Missouri PLTW teachers’ perceptions of various elements of the curriculum as well as state and national PLTW End of Course student assessment data to determine if a relationship existed between teachers’ perceptions of curriculum implementation and student performance, as measured through Missouri End of Course exams in various secondary engineering classes. In addition, the researcher conducted voluntary interviews with teachers, state administrators, and national representatives of PLTW to inquire about experiences with the PLTW Engineering curriculum.

Qualitatively, Missouri PLTW Engineering teachers expressed varied levels of satisfaction through a survey generated by the researcher, based upon national curriculum goals established by PLTW. Within the study, teachers’ perceptions reported students’ abilities to identify, formulate, and solve engineering problems were greater than students’ abilities to design and conduct experiments, as well as to demonstrate knowledge of and responsibility for engineering issues, including ethical and professional responsibilities. The researcher attributed this perception to students’ lack of professional experience and to PLTW curriculum not providing enough opportunities for students to gain real-world relevant experience using the content and strategies learned during instructional class time.

The intention of this study was to provide a framework to review and evaluate curriculum goals established by PLTW, Inc. Originally, the researcher looked at national goals for the program to determine the outcomes of PLTW’s educational programming. However, much of the data was post-secondary related and the researcher wanted to maintain the quantitative nature of the study. Nonetheless, research could expand upon the framework to study any state in the nation through either a mixed-methods approach or the use of a quantitative study approach. The researcher recommends further research be conducted either by PLTW, Inc., through state PLTW affiliates or by other individuals to determine future outcomes of educational curriculum offered by PLTW. This could include engineering, biomedical science, computer science, middle school curriculum offered through Gateway to Technology (GTT), or through elementary curriculum offered through Launch.

A new hospital in United Arab Emirates (UAE) plans to adopt health information technology (HIT) and become fully digitalized once operational. The hospital has identified a need to assess basic computer literacy of new employees prior to offering them training on various HIT applications. Lack of research in identifying an accurate assessment method for basic computer literacy among health care professionals led to this explanatory correlational research study, which compared self-assessment scores and a simulated actual computer skills test to find an appropriate tool for assessing computer literacy. The theoretical framework of the study was based on constructivist learning theory and self-efficacy theory. Two sets of data from 182 hospital employees were collected and analyzed. A t test revealed that scores of self-assessment were significantly higher than they were on the actual test, which indicated that hospital employees tend to score higher on self-assessment when compared to actual skills test. A Pearson product moment correlation revealed a statistically weak correlation between the scores, which implied that self-assessment scores were not a reliable indicator of how an individual would perform on the actual test. An actual skill test was found to be the more reliable tool to assess basic computer skills when compared to self-assessment test. The findings of the study also identified areas where employees at the local hospital lacked basic computer skills, which led to the development of the project to fill these gaps by providing training on basic computer skills prior to them getting trained on various HIT applications. The findings of the study will be useful for hospitals in UAE who are in the process of adopting HIT and for health information educators to design appropriate training curricula based on assessment of basic computer literacy.

Students’ mental health issues are a common concern on college campuses and are often addressed via prevention programming called mental health literacy. This dissertation consists of two studies regarding mental health literacy programming for college students at a western university in the United States. In study one, the Mental Health Awareness and Advocacy Assessment Tool (MHAA-AT) was created and evaluated for its utility in assessing college students’ mental health literacy. This assessment tool is unique in that it is built upon a process-based approach to mental health literacy. The assessment tool demonstrated adequate psychometric properties and it was deemed an appropriate tool to assess college students’ mental health literacy, specifically their declarative knowledge, self-efficacy, and behaviors. In study two the Mental Health Awareness and Advocacy (MHAA) curriculum was created and evaluated in a college student population. The MHAA curriculum is unique in that is taught in-person or online in a degree seeking program at a college or university. Results from study two suggest that the MHAA curriculum was effective in increasing college students’ mental health literacy scores, specifically their declarative knowledge and self-efficacy. The benefit of this two-study dissertation is that it provides a unique way to deliver and evaluate effective mental health literacy prevention programming on a larger scale via a degree-seeking program to college students.

Modern science education reform includes the development of standards and recommendations for content as well as the development and evaluation of pedagogy, but demonstrates limited assessment of student knowledge. Student knowledge assessment is an important factor in measuring the scientific literacy of current students. Concept inventories have been developed and used for the past fourteen years to assess non-science major student conceptual understanding of a content area. Inventories have been developed in the fields of physics, astronomy, chemistry and biology. The development and evaluation of a Genetics Concept Inventory (GCI) is presented here. The reliability estimate of 0.62 is supported by a respected panel of genetics educators' revisions, no significant gender bias, and the ability of junior and senior biology majors to outperform the non-science majors. Pretest/Posttest comparisons show a significant increase in five of six genetics content areas as well as a 9% increase on the overall percent score for the instrument. Although the Genetics Concept Inventory presented here needs further modification and testing, it is the first step in the development of a quality assessment tool for genetics content.
Department of Biology

This thesis presents two research problems regarding the evaluation of the learning outcomes and the curricular organization of the TESOL minor internship course at Brigham Young University. First, the course learning outcomes have not been revisited after their initial design which demands the need for assessment. Additionally, the current curricular organization of the course does not allow for all learning outcomes to apply to students enrolled in the course, as some of the students do their internships internationally which prevents them from participating in the sessions held locally during their internship. In an effort to find solutions to these two problems, data were gathered from the five main stakeholders of the internship course: university administrators and advisors, TESOL faculty, TESOL program coordinators, TESOL internship providers, and students who have enrolled in the TESOL minor internship course. The analysis of the data collected resulted in recommendations for the change and revision of the current learning outcomes into four new ones and the division of the internship curricular organization into two new components: an internship prep course, and in-service support sessions.

Following Independence in 1991 Namibia embarked on a major reform of the entire education system. The reform was perceived as a way of redressing the apartheid legacy and bringing about a democratic learner centred education for all. At the same time the reform was also seen as a prime vehicle to bring about sustainable development through incorporating relevant environmental education into various carrier subjects. One such carrier has been the subject Life Science, which is compulsory from Grade 8 to Grade 10. The Life Science Project was a joint venture between the Ministry of Education and Ibis, a Danish Development NGO, established to develop and support the implementation of Life Science in junior secondary schools. This half-thesis is an evaluation of the Life Science Project through an analysis of the central assumptions on which the Life Science curriculum is based and by investigating different stakeholders’ perceptions and understanding of the learner centred approach adopted by the curriculum. Three questions have guided this research: 1. Are there curriculum models that are more conducive for reform and change than others? 2. Do stakeholders and curriculum developers in Namibia understand the theory of social constructivism, and the systemic implications such an approach has for the education system? 3. Which approach to environmental education complements a transformative curriculum and the changes outlined in policy? From the research carried out in this half-thesis, it would appear that the Namibian education system and the Life Science curriculum suffers from what could be termed “ideological confusion”. Confusion in the sense that there are marked inconsistencies between policy and praxis, between the stated goals and aims of the reform and the curriculum designed to achieve these. This confusion is further exacerbated by various stakeholders’ different interpretations of both policy and the systemic implications the reform policy has on education. In this half-thesis I argue that embarking on an objectives driven model of curriculum cannot bring about change and transformation of the Namibian education system. I further argue that, by not having considered and implemented the necessary systemic changes to the education system, Namibia has, in fact, developed a child centred education system which is fundamentally different from a learner centred education system. Finally, I argue that environmental education, through the subject Life Science, set within an objectives driven, Child Centred Education system is inappropriate for and unable to address the need for developing an environmentally literate citizenry who are able to take informed decisions in order to address the environmental crisis and bring forth a more sustainable future.

The purpose of this study was to survey information systems (IS) curriculum in Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) accredited information systems programs across the United States, to evaluate current adherence to the IS 2010 curriculum guidelines, and to assess the number and type of career track developments initiated as a result of less stringent requirements in the new curriculum guidelines. In addition, an analysis was conducted to see if curriculum in AACSB-accredited information systems programs across the United States changed significantly since other similar evaluations reported in 1996 and 2006, and whether it is closer in adherence to the IS 2010 curriculum guidelines. The results of this study provided a current-state description of IS curriculums in the United States, specifically: (a) percentage adherance relationships and between AACSB-accredited information systems programs to IS 2010 curriculum guidelines; (b) defined curriculum profiles or latent class cluster characteristics of recent career track developments that have emerged; and (c) perceptions of adherence by the IS department faculty compared to the assessed adherence to IS 2010 curriculum guidelines. In the findings, a comprehensive view of the landscape for adherence to IS curriculum guidelines is discussed, including the following. (a) There is a wide range of adherence to the IS curriculum guidelines. In addition, none of the IS program assessed were either entirely compliant or not compliant at all. (b) Some topics are widely covered (over half) as core curriculum while other topics are offered as core curriculum in less than half of IS programs. (c) Very few IS programs have formally implemented the IS 2010 career track guideline recommendations. (d) IS programs implementing formal career tracks specify a reasonably small number of track options for students to consider. (e) IS programs that include career tracks provide unique offerings beyond the proposed sample tracks depicted in the IS 2010 curriculum guidelines. (f) There appear to be reasonably well-defined categories or clusters of IS programs as related to IS 2010 curriculum guideline adherence. (g) IS program faculty describe a higher perceived adherence to IS curriculum guidelines than what is actually assessed in this study. (228 pages)

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of implementing a depth approach to teaching drawing to an intact year four class: specifically, the effect that instruction had on the character of the children's drawings and their attitude towards drawing and their drawing ability. A definition of 'a depth approach' was derived from the literature. An educational evaluation of a depth drawing program was conducted in a Queensland state school. A pilot study, conducted with a year three class assisted in the development of a drawing program and design of the data collection methods. Participant-observation, interviews, children's written comments and analysis of the children's drawings constituted the data collection methods. The researcher participated as a visiting art teacher. The children were interviewed individually before and after the teaching intervention in order to ascertain their attitude to drawing and any change in attitude. Informal discussions during classes and student comments on their drawings also contributed to the data. A pre-intervention drawing was solicited from the children so as to assist in the evaluation of drawing development resulting from the lessons. The findings of this study suggest that the implementation of a depth approach to teaching drawing that: provides sequential and cumulative learning; considers the developmental readiness of the children; draws on a variety of teaching/learning strategies that assist children to develop a variety of skills and provides opportunities for children to apply these skills expressively can assist children to develop outside the stages described by developmentalists and to retain and develop a positive attitude towards drawing.

Dissertation (PhD)--University of Stellenbosch, 2005.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The Saudi Arabian Government has implemented a nation-wide policy to prepare its people for the workforce and has directed that the Saudi Council for Health Specialties (SCHS) be established. Under the SCHS umbrella the Saudi Nursing Board (SNB) has been formed for the purpose of regulating the nursing profession. While Saudi Arabia has for many years been dependent on the international community for nurses, it is now establishing its own nursing workforce. One challenge for the SCHS and the SNB is to ensure that practice standards are developed, since ultimately nursing practice affects the quality of the patient services and patient health outcomes. The Saudi nursing profession has a responsibility to develop its social mandate and provide a full range of services to the Saudi public. Systems and education programmes are required for all aspects of the regulatory process, including continuing professional development. Effective regulation systems are not based on a “one size fits all” approach. Furthermore, nurses need to insist on high quality education to develop both basic and ongoing competence and should be able to depend on the profession for social status and credibility. The purpose of this research was to develop, implement, validate and evaluate a continuing professional development learning programme for nurses working in Saudi Arabia. The learning programme was built from a vision of nurses (regardless of country) engaging in lifelong learning for the purpose of ensuring quality patient care and population health. The development of a continuing professional development learning programme is an initial step in fulfilling the need for educational structures to support standards of practice. The overall outcome of the research was functional by nature in that the knowledge of continuing professional development in nursing was generated and applied to nursing practice in Saudi Arabia. In view of the nature of the question, a mixed methodology was selected. Although the qualitative aspect was dominant, both the qualitative and quantitative aspects were used simultaneously. The design included exploratory and descriptive aspects. Furthermore, the researcher employed qualitative methods to develop, implement and evaluate the provisional learning programme and quantitative methods to validate the provisional programme, resulting in a partial explanation of the research phenomenon. The primary theoretical drive was inductive, as the purpose was to discover rather than to test the learning programme contents. Botes’ Research Model and King’s Theory of Goal Attainment were utilised. They complemented each other, as they both support a comprehensive, dynamic scientific approach to learning (health) outcomes influenced by the quality of nursing practice and practice environment. The research, which was outcomes–based, was carried out in the context of quality patient care (population health) and nursing practice situated within the Saudi Arabian setting, where the nursing regulatory system is emerging. As the questionnaire mean ( X ) results revealed scores of 3.0 to 3.9, data saturation was achieved during the first round of the Delphi technique. Fourteen experts from six different countries were asked to validate the provisional learning programme, which was duly done. The programme was implemented in a tertiary research hospital in Saudi Arabia. Formative and summative evaluations were also conducted. The results of the implementation and evaluation affirmed the effectiveness of the learning programme. Boyer’s Model for Scholarship was used to triangulate the research findings. These results formed the basis for the recommendations and final summary. The five broad recommendations that emerged from the research were that nurses should take on self-regulatory and leadership responsibilities; that they should engage in continuing professional development collaboration; that the nursing profession’s self-regulation responsibilities be acknowledged; that a healthy (quality) workplace environment be ensured; and that further research be done in this field.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die regering van Saoedi-Arabië het ʼn landwye beleid geïmplementeer om die mense van die land vir die arbeidsmag voor te berei en het opdrag gegee vir die stigting van die Saudi Council for Health Specialties (SCHS,) ʼn raad wat spesifiek met gesondheidsdienste gemoeid is. Die Saoedi Raad vir Verpleging (Saudi Nursing Board oftewel SNB) is tot stand gebring met die doel om die verpleegdiens in die land te reguleer. Nadat Saoedi-Arabië vir baie jare van die internasionale gemeenskap vir verpleegkundiges afhanklik was, word ʼn eie verpleegkorps nou in die land gevestig. Een van die uitdagings waarmee die SCHS en die SNB te kampe het, is die noodsaaklikheid om te verseker dat standaarde vir die praktyk ontwikkel word, aangesien die verpleegpraktyk inderdaad die gehalte van pasiënte-diens en gesondheidsuitkomste beïnvloed. Die verpleegberoep in Saoedi-Arabië is daarvoor verantwoordelik om sy maatskaplike mandaat te ontwikkel en ʼn volledige reeks dienste aan die mense van die land beskikbaar te stel. Stelsels en opvoedkundige programme is nodig vir alle aspekte van die reguleringsproses. Dit sluit voortgesette professionele ontwikkeling in. Vir ʼn reguleringstelsel om werklik doeltreffend te wees moet dit op spesifieke behoeftes gerig wees en kan een stelsel nie aan al die vereistes van diverse instellings voldoen nie. Dit is noodsaaklik dat verpleegkundiges op onderrig van ʼn hoë gehalte aandring ten einde basiese en voortgaande bevoegdheid te ontwikkel. Daarbenewens behoort hulle op die beroep te kan steun vir sosiale status en geloofwaardigheid. Die doel van hierdie navorsing was om ʼn voortgesette leerprogram vir die professionele ontwikkeling van verpleegkundiges wat in Saoedi-Arabië werk, te ontwikkel, te implementeer, te valideer en te evalueer. Die leerprogram het onstaan uit ʼn visie van verpleegsters (ongeag hulle land van oorsprong) wat hulle met lewenslange leer besig hou met die doel om diens van ʼn hoë gehalte aan pasiënte asook bevolkingsgesondheid te verseker. Met die ontwikkeling van ʼn leerprogram vir voortgesette professionele ontwikkeling is die eerste stap gedoen om in die behoefte aan opvoedkundige strukture ter ondersteuning van praktykstandaarde te voorsien. Die algehele uitkoms van die navorsing was funksioneel van aard deurdat die kennis van voortgesette professionele ontwikkeling in verpleging deur die verpleegpraktyk in Saoedi-Arabië gegenereer en ook daarop toegepas is. Vanweë die aard van die navorsingsvraag is besluit om ʼn gemengde metodologie, dit is kwalitatiewe en kwantitatiewe aspekte gelyktydig te gebruik, met die kwalitatiewe aspek as die dominante metode. Sowel verkennende as beskrywende aspekte is in die ontwerp ingesluit. Daarbenewens het die navorser kwalitatiewe metodes gebruik om die voorlopige leerprogram te ontwikkel, te implementeer en te evalueer, en kwantitatiewe metodes om die voorlopige program te valideer. Die navorsingsverskynsel is deur middel van ʼn gedeeltelike verklarende metode ontleed. Die primêre teoretiese dryfkrag was induktief, aangesien dit die doel van die navorsing was om die leerprogram se inhoud te ontdek eerder as om dit te toets. Daar is van Botes se Navorsingsmodel en King se Teorie van Doelbereiking (Theory of Goal Attainment) gebruik gemaak. Hulle het mekaar aangevul aangesien albei ʼn omvangryke, dinamiese wetenskaplike benadering tot leer- (gesondheid-) uitkomste, wat deur die gehalte van verpleegpraktyk en die praktykomgewing beïnvloed word, ondersteun. Die navorsing, wat uitkomsgebaseerd was, is uitgevoer binne die konteks van pasiëntediens van gehalte (bevolkingsgesondheid) en verpleegpraktyk, gesetel in die Saoedi-Arabiese milieu, waar die reguleringstelsel vir verpleegkunde aan die ontwikkel is. Data saturasie is reeds bevestig tydens die eerste rondte van die Delphi tegniek met gemiddelde tellings van ( X ) 3,0 en 3,9. Die navorsingsontwerp is daardeur verder versterk. Veertien deskundiges van ses verskillende lande is gevra om die voorlopige leerprogram te valideer, wat hulle ook gedoen het. Die program is in ʼn tersiêre navorsingshospitaal in Saoedi-Arabië geïmplementeer. Formatiewe en summatiewe evaluering is gedoen en die resultate van die implementering en evaluering het die doeltreffendheid van die leerprogram bevestig. Boyer se Wetenskaplikheidsmodel (Model for Scholarship) is gebruik om die navorsingsbevindinge te staaf. Hierdie resultate het die grondslag gelê vir die aanbevelings en die finale opsomming. Die vyf breë aanbevelings wat uit die navorsing voortgekom het was dat verpleegkundiges selfregulerende en leierskapverantwoordelikhede aanvaar; dat hulle aan samewerkingsaksies ten opsigte van voortgesette professionele ontwikkeling deelneem; dat die verpleegberoep se verantwoordelikhede ten opsigte van selfregulering erken word; dat ʼn gesonde (gehalte-) werkomgewing verseker word; en dat verdere navorsing op hierdie gebied gedoen word.