Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'First year teachers Victoria Attitudes'

Thesis (Ed. D.)--Illinois State University, 1997.
Title from title page screen, viewed June 8, 2006. Dissertation Committee: Larry Kennedy (chair), John Godbold, John Goeldi, William Tolone. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 67-73) and abstract. Also available in print.

The purpose of this study was to compare the self-efficacy of two groups of first year teachers working in a large urban school district in North Texas. Twenty-eight of the participants were certified teachers. Ten participants held college degrees unrelated to teaching and were undergoing an alternative certification process. The Teacher Efficacy Scale was administered at the beginning and the end of the school year. Data from this scale was analyzed to determine if there were differences between the regular certification teachers and the alternative certification teachers at the beginning and the end of the school year, and to determine if their sense of efficacy changed over the course of the school year.

This qualitative, longitudinal study followed four first-year MA TESOL students through their initial year in a teacher training program with the goal of determining whether their overall beliefs about teaching and learning changed over time as a result of program curriculum and other outside factors. An analysis of semi-structured interviews with each participant, conducted one to two times per quarter, revealed that participants' beliefs appeared to evolve as a result of coursework and teaching practice. Participants' identities as teachers also showed signs of evolution and development. The participants attributed the majority of their development to hands-on teaching practice, though there was evidence that they began to integrate more theoretical aspects of program curriculum by the end of the year. However, the participants also demonstrated a lack of interest in theoretical and research-related coursework that persisted throughout their first year. Participants' lack of interest and stress brought on by unfamiliar material may have limited the amount of integration of research and theory into their practice. Findings suggest a mismatch between program goals and student goals, with students being focused on teaching practice and the program being focused on both the practical and theoretical aspects of the curriculum.

Information literacy is widely acknowledged as important for student success in higher education. Information literacy is the ability to sort through a large amount of available information, decide what is useful and believable, and apply it in an effective and ethical way. Faculty members have expectations regarding information literacy for students in the first year of college, while students have information literacy practices that may or may not match those expectations. In my study, I examined the alignment of faculty member information literacy expectations and student information literacy practices, focusing on freshman students and faculty members who teach freshman students in a required general education course at a public university in the northwestern United States. Using an exploratory sequential mixed methods research design, I began my study with qualitative interviews of students and faculty members, used data from the interviews to develop a survey instrument, conducted a pilot study with the survey instrument, and used the survey instrument to administer an online quantitative survey to 106 students and 10 faculty members. The survey consisted of 42 items pertaining to student practices and faculty expectations as identified by student and faculty member interview participants. Survey data showed the percentage of faculty members expecting a practice was generally higher than the percentage of students carrying out that practice. Overall, the study findings revealed a gap between faculty expectations and student practices.

The main purpose of the study was to explore the relationships between self concepts of beginning teachers as measured before and after an internship year. The second purpose of the study was to examine whether there were significant differences between beginning elementary teachers' expectations/experiences, attitudes and views before and after a year of participation in the Beginning Teacher Internship Program. A comparison of differences in perceptions between the findings obtained from the beginning elementary teachers and their cooperating principals was also conducted.The populations for the study included 138 beginning elementary teachers and 120 cooperating principals.Nine research questions were developed and tested using the data from participants who responded to this research. The t test at the .05 level of significant difference was administered in this study.The following results were obtained:1. There were no significant differences in the self concepts of beginning teachers from before participation in comparison to those self concepts held after a year's participation in the Beginning Teacher Internship Program as measured by the Self-perception Inventory. Within the instrument, three items of 36 yielded significant differences.2. There were significant differences before the start of the internship year between the expectations (7 of 12 items), attitudes (6 of 10 items), and views (3 of 3 items) held by beginning teachers and those held by their cooperating principals. Beginning teachers held more positive expectations, attitudes and views than did their cooperating principals.3. There were significant differences in 11 of 12 items after a year's experience with BTIP between the reported experiences of beginning teachers and the observed experiences of beginning teachers as reported by their principals. Beginning teachers reported more positive experiences than their principals.4. There were significant differences between the expectations/experiences (11 of 13 items), and attitudes (6 of 10 items) held by beginning teachers before and after participation in the BTIP.The educational implications of these findings were presented. Recommendations for further research and replication were also presented.
Department of Educational Leadership

The significance of the project was to answer the call of California schools in their plight to stop attrition and retain teachers. This project alone or in conjunction with other programs offered by schools/school districts gives them another tool to reach their goal of 100% teacher retention. It is the belief of this project that the problems with retention could be diminished if not eliminated, by giving beginning teachers a handbook.

Thesis (DAppLing)--Macquarie University, Faculty of Human Sciences, Department of Linguistics, 2009.
Bibliography: p. 167-188.
Introduction -- Contextual background -- Literature review -- Methodology -- Pre-service teachers' beliefs about being a teacher -- Practicum students' beliefs about the teaching experience -- Teachers' first year experience: beliefs and reflections -- Conclusions.
This research focuses on the analysis of the beliefs of pre-service Mexican student-teachers from a public university in central Mexico who have learned English as adolescents or young adults. Specifically, it examines their beliefs about teaching and about themselves as English teachers in different stages of initial professional development. The participants reflected on their experiences as English language learners, students, teaching practicum students and as first year teachers in a follow up study. -- This thesis is composed of three studies that are linked by involving the same participants. The studies follow these participants through different stages in their initial development as teachers.The research is set within the qualitative research paradigm and draws on qualitative data and interpretive analysis. The data were retrieved using the following procedures: autobiographies, a focus group interview, journals, personal interviews and short narratives. -- Responses to the following research questions emerged through the different stages of this thesis. 1. What initial beliefs do pre-service and beginning students hold about being a teacher? 2. Do these beliefs evolve or change during the initial stages of their teacher development? 3. Do their experiences during their initial stages of their development influence their beliefs? -- There is little research on English language teacher beliefs in Mexico. It is considered that research in this area can contribute to the understanding of the processes of what English language teachers' beliefs are and how they evolve or develop over time and the influences that they may have on the actual teaching process. This research may contribute to bring to the attention of English language teacher preparation programs the necessity of providing opportunities for student-teachers to unpack their beliefs and reflect and view them in the light of the courses and their practice in order to create an understanding of the Mexican educational context of which they will be a part.
Mode of access: World Wide Web.
viii, 265 p

The purpose of this study was to describe the perceptions of the first year experience of teaching secondary agriculture and to explore the relationships between these perceptions, the characteristics of beginning agriculture teachers, and the types of support provided to beginning teachers. An additional focus of the study was to explore the relationship between the level of commitment to teaching and the perceptions of the first year experience. Information was gathered from secondary agriculture teachers across the U.S. who were in their second year of teaching agricultural education during the 2003-2004 academic year. A survey instrument was created specifically for this study through which information about the perceived experience of the first year, the types of support provided to the beginning teacher during the initial year of teaching, the perceived effectiveness of the support provided, demographic characteristics of the beginning teacher, and the perceived likelihood of teaching secondary agriculture in the future was gathered. Data were analyzed using descriptive and correlational statistics. The 57 variables related to the perceptions of the first year experience were reduced to 14 factors through Principal Component Analysis. Nearly 90 percent of respondents described the overall experience of their first year as very positive, positive, or somewhat positive. The most frequently reported positive experiences included working with students in the FFA, participating in professional development opportunities, and using computers and multimedia in teaching. A majority of respondents also described their relationships with school staff, colleagues, and administrators as positive or very positive. Less than 25 percent of respondents perceived the salary in relationship to the time required as positive or very positive. Most respondents reported negative perceptions of working with students in the classroom who don't want to be there and in dealing with problem student behavior. While nearly three-fourths of the respondents reported they were highly likely to teach secondary agriculture one-year from the time of the survey, less than one-third reported they were highly likely to do so at five years, and only 15% reported they were highly likely to do so twenty years from the time of the survey.
Graduation date: 2004

This qualitative dissertation explored the professional learning experiences and perceived needs of four beginning high school English teachers in two NYC schools and the ways and means those needs were being addressed or not addressed. Through in-depth interviews with the teachers, my renderings from the interviews focused on how discourse shapes an understanding of the professional learning opportunities that operate as openings and constraints for teachers’ professional growth. I drew on the work of historian Michel Foucault as a theoretical framework to examine the production of a teacher’s sense of “self” as an effect of power/knowledge relations circulating within the dominant school discourses in which they are situated and the larger educational context at this historic moment.

This study seeks to investigate the extent to which novice Foundation Phase (FP) teachers who are former Post-Graduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) students, perceive the programme as adequate for preparing them to become Foundation Phase teachers. Traditionally, the PGCE programme focuses on Senior and Further Education and Training (FET) teachers and it is clear what disciplinary knowledge these students bring from their undergraduate degrees. The disciplinary content knowledge that FP students bring to the PGCE is less clear. Students with at least one major (third year level) subject and two subjects at first year level, from the subject areas like Languages, Psychology and Sociology, are accepted into the PGCE FP programme. The PGCE focuses primarily on developing teaching skills. This study also seeks to determine in what ways the undergraduate degree was of help in preparing them to become Foundation Phase teachers. Individual interviews were conducted with six participants, who were practicing teachers, from a group of thirty six students who completed the PGCE in 2008/2009. The study is underpinned by Grossman's theory about teacher knowledge and teaching. Five of the participants who were teaching in rural schools perceived the programme to be adequate. They said that they acquired knowledge of psychological, sociological and linguistic foundations of reading and writing; process and instruction; and that they gained knowledge on how to plan for and use a wide range of curriculum materials. However one teacher, who was teaching at an urban school, indicated that the programme was not very useful in preparing her for Foundation Phase teaching. Rather, she perceived the knowledge she gained at the school where she taught after completing the PGCE as being relevant. She cited that she received support mainly from her mentor teacher who was her Head of Department. These findings seem to suggest that novice teachers learn more in well-resourced schools where there is good support and mentoring, whereas in poorly resourced schools that lack instructional mentoring, teachers tend to rely more on what they learn in formal programmes like the PGCE.
Theses (M.Ed.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2012.

Abstract in English, Afrikaans and Xhosa
Critical thinking competencies are not only seen as crucial for success in higher education, but also for future personal and workplace success. These competencies are commonly cited as a graduate attribute or goal of higher education, and resulting research has tended to focus on exploring and measuring the development of critical thinking competencies in students within higher education. However, few researchers have explored the curriculum and practice of academic staff within higher education in relation to their influence on developing critical thinking competencies in students, or how they theorise about the development of these competencies as part of their professional practice. Within the South African context, there is a perception of a decline in the development of critical thinking competencies within the secondary school system. This has informed policy imperatives to improve access and success in South African higher education through additional support for students, as well as through research into the first-year experience. Within a constructivist paradigm, and adopting a qualitative approach, this study takes the first year of higher education as its context in order to explore the curriculum, assessment, pedagogical and andragogical practices of academic staff designed to develop critical thinking competencies in first-year students. The aim is to explore how academic staff construct their theory and practice in order to contribute to the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in South African Higher Education. Phenomenological case study research methods, which draw on data collection through semi-structured interviews and document analysis, enabled a better understanding of the lived experience of academic staff within private higher education. Academic staff, as research participants, were able to describe deliberate actions taken in their teaching practices to facilitate the development and assessment of critical thinking competencies. The findings revealed that academic staff – while having no coherent, well-articulated construction of critical thinking competencies – feel that such competencies are essential for academic and future life success. This not only affirmed previous research reviewed, but aligned to the inclusion of explicit and implicit references to critical thinking competencies found in the curriculum and assessment documents. Recommendations for professional development responded specifically to these findings.
Kritiese denkvaardighede word nie net as wesentlik vir sukses in hoër onderwys beskou nie, maar ook vir toekomstige sukses, op persoonlike vlak en in die werkplek. Hierdie bevoegdhede word algemeen aanvaar as dié van ‘n gegradueerde of as oogmerk in hoër onderwys. Gevolglik was ondersoeke geneig om te fokus op die verkenning en meting van die ontwikkeling van kritiekedenkbevoegdhede by studente binne die hoër onderwys. Min navorsers het egter die kurrikulum en praktyk van akademiese personeel binne die hoër onderwys met betrekking tot hul invloed op die ontwikkeling van kritiekedenkbevoegdhede in studente verken nie, of hoe hulle teoretiseer oor die ontwikkeling van hierdie bevoegdhede as deel van hul professionele praktyk. Binne die Suid-Afrikaanse konteks is die persepsie dat die ontwikkeling van kritiekedenkbevoegdhede binne die sekondêreskoolstelsel afneem. Dit het bygedra tot beleidsimperatiewe om toegang en sukses in die Suid-Afrikaanse hoër onderwys te verbeter deur bykomende ondersteuning aan studente te gee, asook deur die eerstejaarervaring te ondersoek. Binne ‘n konstruktivistiese paradigma, en deur gebruik te maak van ‘n kwalitatiewe benadering, neem hierdie studie die eerste jaar van hoër onderwys as konteks ten einde die kurrikulum, assessering, pedagogiese en andragogiese praktyke van akademiese personeel wat ontwerp is om kritiekedenkbevoegdhede by eerstejaarstudente te verken. Die doel is om na te volg hoe akademiese personeel hul teorie en praktyk saamstel ten einde by te dra tot die Kundigheid in Onderrig en Leer in Suid-Afrika se Hoër Onderwys. Fenomenologiese gevallestudienavorsingsmetodes wat steun op die inwin van data deur middel van semigestruktureerde onderhoude en dokumentontleding, het gelei tot beter begrip van die geleefde ervaring van akademiese personeel binne privaat hoër onderwys. Akademiese personeel, as navorsingsgenote, kon optrede beskryf wat doelbewus in hul onderrigpraktyke geneem word om die ontwikkeling en assessering van kritiekedenkbevoegdhede te fasiliteer. Die bevindinge het getoon dat akademiese personeel – sonder koherente, goed geartikuleerde konstruksie van kritiekedenkbevoegdhede – voel dat sulke vaardighede wesentlik is vir akademiese en toekomstige sukses in die lewe. Dit het nie net vorige navorsing bevestig nie, maar gestrook met die insluiting van eksplisiete en implisiete verwysings na kritiekedenkbevoegdhede binne die kurrikulum- en assesseringsdokumente. Aanbevelings vir professionele ontwikkeling het spesifiek op hierdie bevindinge reageer.
Ubuchule bokucinga nzulu abubonwa kuphela njengecebo elibalulekileyo lokuphumelela kwimfundo ephakamileyo, bukwabonwa njengecebo lokuphumelela komntu kwizinto zakhe nakwindawo axelenga kuyo. Obu buchule bukholisa ukuchazwa njengenjongo yemfundo ephakamileyo, kwaye uphando lweziphumo luthande ukugxininisa ekuqwalaseleni nasekulinganiseleni ukuphuhliseka kwezakhono zokucinga nzulu kubafundi bemfundo ephakamileyo. Noxa kunjalo, bambalwa abaphandi bolwazi abakhe baqwalasela ukusetyenziswa kwekharityhulam ngabahlohli bemfundo ephakamileyo malunga nefuthe ekuphuhliseni izakhono zokucinga nzulu kubafundi, okanye iingcingane zophuhliso lokuphuhliseka kwezi zakhono njengenxalenye yomsebenzi wabo. Kwimeko yoMzantsi Afrika kukho imbono yokuba ziyaphelelwa izakhono zokucinga nzulu kwinkqubo yemfundo yezikolo zeesekondari. Oku kukhokelele ekusekeni iinkqubo zempumelelo kwimfundo ephakamileyo ngokunika inkxaso eyongezelelekileyo kubafundi, nangokuphanda ngamava abafundi abakunyaka wokuqala. Ngokujonga kwinkalo ethi imfundo yinkqubo yokusebenza, nangokusebenzisa indlela yophando lomgangatho, esi sifundo sithatha unyaka wokuqala wemfundo ephakamileyo njengemeko nendawo yokuqwalasela ukusetyenziswa kwekharityhulam, uhlolo, ukufundiswa kolutsha nasebekhulile ngabahlohli ekuphuhliseni izakhono zokucinga nzulu kubafundi bonyaka wokuqala. Injongo kukuqwalasela ukuba abahlohli bayiqulunqa njani ingcingane nokusebenza ukuze kuncediswe kubungcali bokufundisa nokufunda kwimfundo ephakamileyo yoMzantsi Afrika. Iindlela zophando zeemeko ezithile, ezifumana iinkcukacha zolwazi ngokuqhuba udliwano ndlebe oluphantse lwangqongqo, nangokuphengulula imibhalo, kwanceda ukuba kuqondakale ngcono amava abahlohli bemfundo ephakamileyo yabucala. Abahlohli abangabathathi nxaxheba kuphando baye bakwazi ukuchaza izenzo ezingqalileyo ezenzelwe ukuphuhlisa nokuhlola izakhono zokucinga nzulu. Okufunyanisiweyo kwadulisa ukuba abahlohli – lo gama bengenasakhelo sibambekayo nesinokuchazwa gca sezakhono zokucinga nzulu – bayaqonda ukuba ezi zakhono zingundoqo kwimpumelelo kwezemfundo nakubomi obuzayo. Oku akwanelanga nje ukungqina okuvezwe luphando lwangaphambili, koko kongeze kosele kuthethwa ngqo okanye mayana, kwimibhalo yekharityhulam nohlolo, malunga nezakhono zokucinga nzulu. Iingcebiso zophuhliso zisabele ngqo koko kufunyanisiweyo.
Curriculum and Instructional Studies
D. Phil.(Education in the subject Curriculum Studies)

School-based induction programmes largely focus on informing beginner teachers about the school culture and infrastructure, yet, the core business of education is teaching and learning. A consensus is, however, growing among educators and researchers that despite the positive experiences novice teachers experience during school-based induction programmes, they also experience challenges which affect their perceptions of school-based induction. Despite those challenges in the education sector, hope for the future, as guided by Vision 2030, still remains with one essential human resource: the teachers themselves. Therefore, if novice teachers are to impact profoundly on the learners’ academic achievement, then quality induction programmes must be in place in Namibian schools in order to support their instructional growth. A comprehensive nation-wide induction effort with high emphasise on mentoring will accelerate novice teacher efficacy and consequently learner learning. The purpose of this research study was to identify beginner teachers’ perceptions of school-based induction at selected primary schools in Windhoek and suggested a framework which may inform future research efforts and improve the application of school-based induction. To do this, a qualitative research methodology was preferred to assess the perceptions of novice teachers at the selected schools. Eight beginner teachers and four Heads of Departments participated in the study. The result draws attention to the professional enculturation of beginner teachers, but notably, compels practical reconsideration on how school-based induction is practised in light of beginner teacher growth and sustainability.
Educational Management and Leadership
M. Ed. (Educational Management)

Teachers leaving the profession is an ongoing problem; fewer teachers enter the profession each year and the number of teachers leaving the profession has increased. Many teachers listed job satisfaction as a reason for leaving the education profession, whilst citing the lack of mentoring as a cause of job dissatisfaction. Mentoring is known as the planned paring of a more experienced person with a lesser individual to help with the professional development of that individual and reduce teacher turnover. The aim of the study is to explore the impact of an effective mentoring programme at primary schools by developing and implementing such a mentoring programme to support and improve job satisfaction among beginner teachers in the province of Mpumalanga entering the profession for the first time. The following quantitative techniques were used during this study: document analysis and Likert-scale questionnaires, completed by 1 000 male and female teachers (principals, deputy principals, heads of departments, teachers and student teachers) from different races and cultures (20 teachers per school) from 50 randomly selected rural primary schools, private primary schools and Quintile 4 and 5 primary schools in the province of Mpumalanga. The analysis of data enabled me to identify a series of factors that were utilised to develop a mentoring programme that school management can implement in their schools to help beginner teachers to cope in their new work environment in order to improve job satisfaction and improve teacher retention. The factors identified include: aspects of job satisfaction that support leaners in achieving their goals; aspects of school management; the contribution of mentoring programme on the job satisfaction of beginner teachers; the responsibility of a mentor in developing a mentoring programme; the responsibility of a mentee in developing a mentoring programme; the responsibility of schools in developing a mentoring programme and characteristics that should be demonstrated by a mentor. From the data gathered, a mentoring programme was developed, namely the Hugo mentoring model. This model outlined the roles and responsibilities of mentors, mentees and school management throughout the mentoring process. The model also provided steps that should be taken into consideration when organising meetings between mentors and mentees.
Educational Studies
D. Ed.