title: Professional Development for a New Curriculum for a Developing Country: The Example of Technology Education in the Solomon Islands

authors: Sade, David

subjects: teacher professional development

abstract: This thesis explores the impact of a specially designed technology education
professional development programme for traditional technical education secondary
teachers to assist with the implementation of technology education in the Solomon
Islands. Technology education is a new development for the teachers in Solomon
Islands who are used to a more prescribed technical education. The technology
education in the Solomon Islands is in the process of change with the curriculum
being developed into a broader technological literacy approach comprising of
technological knowledge, technological process, and technological and societal
values. Thus, the development of teacher knowledge of technology and technology
education and their technology education practices are crucial for the successful
implementation of the new technology curriculum proposal.
The theoretical framework of this thesis is based on the interpretivist paradigm with a
qualitative case study approach. A two-year study with eight secondary technology
education teachers in the Solomon Islands was undertaken in 2005 and 2006. The
teachers existing perceptions of technology and technology education, classroom
practices and student learning in 2005 are described. The professional development
programme undertaken in 2006 and its impact on the secondary school teachers'
perceptions of technology and technology education, classroom practices, and student
learning in technology education are also examined.
The preliminary inquiry in 2005 showed that the technology teachers in the Solomon
Islands held narrow perspectives of technology and technology education, with views
centring on narrow technical aspects. The teachers' 2005 classroom practices were
very conservative with technical skills focussed teaching approaches fostered mainly
rote learning, and their assessment was dominated by summative assessment foci. The
2005 findings were used as a basis for a professional development to prepare teachers
to become more effective when teaching the proposed technology curriculum. A
professional development intervention programme was undertaken in 2006. It was
based on key professional development principles of teacher support and teacher
reflection and sharing. It was on-going and was undertaken over time. A social
constructivist learning model was used by the professiosnal development provider to
iii
help bring about teacher change. This programme built on the localised context and
was crafted around best practices from other professional developemnt models.
The study provides empirical evidence that the professional development intervention
programme had a positive impact on the teachers' perceptions of technology and
technology education, and teachers' teaching practices which changed from having a
technical education focus to a technology education focus. There were strong links
between teachers' perceptions and their classroom practices. When teachers
developed robust knowledge about technology and technology education, and used
appropriate technology education specific pedagogies they were able to successfully
implement the new Solomon Island technology education curriculum. The positive
impact of the professional development programme on teachers' understandings of
the nature of technology and technology education, their classroom practices, and
student learning demonstrate its effectiveness. The success of the professional
development model justifies the recommendation for its wider use in other developing
countries with similar contexts and situations to the Solomon Islands.

text: Professional Development for a New Curriculum for a Developing Country: The Example of Technology Education in the Solomon Islands This thesis explores the impact of a specially designed technology education
professional development programme for traditional technical education secondary
teachers to assist with the implementation of technology education in the Solomon
Islands. Technology education is a new development for the teachers in Solomon
Islands who are used to a more prescribed technical education. The technology
education in the Solomon Islands is in the process of change with the curriculum
being developed into a broader technological literacy approach comprising of
technological knowledge, technological process, and technological and societal
values. Thus, the development of teacher knowledge of technology and technology
education and their technology education practices are crucial for the successful
implementation of the new technology curriculum proposal.
The theoretical framework of this thesis is based on the interpretivist paradigm with a
qualitative case study approach. A two-year study with eight secondary technology
education teachers in the Solomon Islands was undertaken in 2005 and 2006. The
teachers existing perceptions of technology and technology education, classroom
practices and student learning in 2005 are described. The professional development
programme undertaken in 2006 and its impact on the secondary school teachers'
perceptions of technology and technology education, classroom practices, and student
learning in technology education are also examined.
The preliminary inquiry in 2005 showed that the technology teachers in the Solomon
Islands held narrow perspectives of technology and technology education, with views
centring on narrow technical aspects. The teachers' 2005 classroom practices were
very conservative with technical skills focussed teaching approaches fostered mainly
rote learning, and their assessment was dominated by summative assessment foci. The
2005 findings were used as a basis for a professional development to prepare teachers
to become more effective when teaching the proposed technology curriculum. A
professional development intervention programme was undertaken in 2006. It was
based on key professional development principles of teacher support and teacher
reflection and sharing. It was on-going and was undertaken over time. A social
constructivist learning model was used by the professiosnal development provider to
iii
help bring about teacher change. This programme built on the localised context and
was crafted around best practices from other professional developemnt models.
The study provides empirical evidence that the professional development intervention
programme had a positive impact on the teachers' perceptions of technology and
technology education, and teachers' teaching practices which changed from having a
technical education focus to a technology education focus. There were strong links
between teachers' perceptions and their classroom practices. When teachers
developed robust knowledge about technology and technology education, and used
appropriate technology education specific pedagogies they were able to successfully
implement the new Solomon Island technology education curriculum. The positive
impact of the professional development programme on teachers' understandings of
the nature of technology and technology education, their classroom practices, and
student learning demonstrate its effectiveness. The success of the professional
development model justifies the recommendation for its wider use in other developing
countries with similar contexts and situations to the Solomon Islands.

year: 2009

title: The impact of background and context on car distance estimation

authors: Zhang, Fan

subjects: Distance Estimation

abstract: It is well established that people underestimate the distance to objects depicted in virtual environments and two-dimensional (2D) displays. The reasons for the underestimation are still not fully understood. It is becoming more common to use virtual environment displays for driver training and testing and so understanding the distortion of perceived space that occurs in these displays is vital. We need to know what aspects of the display cause the observer to misperceive the distance to objects in the simulated environments. The research reported in this thesis investigated how people estimate distance between themselves and a car in front of them, within a number of differing environmental contexts.  Four experiments were run using virtual environment displays of various kinds and a fifth experiment was run in a real-world setting.
It was found that distance underestimation when viewing 2D displays is very common, even when familiar objects such as cars are used as the targets. The experiments also verified that people have a greater underestimation of distance in a virtual environment compared to a real-world setting. A surprising and somewhat counterintuitive result was that people underestimate distance more when the scene depicts forward motion of the observer compared to a static view.  The research also identified a number of visual features in the display (e.g., texture information) and aspects of the display (e.g., field of view) that affected the perception of distance or that had no effect. The findings should help the designers of driver-training simulators and testing equipment to better understand the types of errors that can potentially occur when humans view two-dimensional virtual environment displays.

text: The impact of background and context on car distance estimation It is well established that people underestimate the distance to objects depicted in virtual environments and two-dimensional (2D) displays. The reasons for the underestimation are still not fully understood. It is becoming more common to use virtual environment displays for driver training and testing and so understanding the distortion of perceived space that occurs in these displays is vital. We need to know what aspects of the display cause the observer to misperceive the distance to objects in the simulated environments. The research reported in this thesis investigated how people estimate distance between themselves and a car in front of them, within a number of differing environmental contexts.  Four experiments were run using virtual environment displays of various kinds and a fifth experiment was run in a real-world setting.
It was found that distance underestimation when viewing 2D displays is very common, even when familiar objects such as cars are used as the targets. The experiments also verified that people have a greater underestimation of distance in a virtual environment compared to a real-world setting. A surprising and somewhat counterintuitive result was that people underestimate distance more when the scene depicts forward motion of the observer compared to a static view.  The research also identified a number of visual features in the display (e.g., texture information) and aspects of the display (e.g., field of view) that affected the perception of distance or that had no effect. The findings should help the designers of driver-training simulators and testing equipment to better understand the types of errors that can potentially occur when humans view two-dimensional virtual environment displays.

year: 2014

title: The Mātauranga Māori in Mathematics Directive: Exploring the place of mātauranga Māori in Mathematics teaching and learning

authors: Williams, Jessica Elizabeth

subjects: mathematics education

abstract: This thesis explores issues concerning mātauranga Māori in mathematics teaching and learning here in Aotearoa. The Ministry of Education has directed that mana ōrite mō te mātauranga Māori be embedded in teaching, learning, and assessment. Thus, this research primarily aims to understand the development leading to the directive of including mātauranga Māori in education policies. For the English-medium secondary education settings, the second and third aims of this research are to explore what mātauranga Māori means to teachers of mathematics and to consider the connections between mātauranga Māori and mathematics teaching and learning. To investigate these aims, a semi-structured group discussion with four secondary mathematics teachers from an English-medium setting was conducted. The results of this thesis highlight the confusion and challenges secondary mathematics educators have toward defining, and subsequently, implementing mātauranga Māori in their classrooms. This thesis also found that there is enthusiasm and interest around learning how to ensure indigenous and marginalised learners reach their mathematics potential. Believing that indigenous worldviews have the potential to shift education outcomes for minority learners, this thesis adds to literature related to indigenous education, secondary mathematics education, and English-medium education of Māori learners.

text: The Mātauranga Māori in Mathematics Directive: Exploring the place of mātauranga Māori in Mathematics teaching and learning This thesis explores issues concerning mātauranga Māori in mathematics teaching and learning here in Aotearoa. The Ministry of Education has directed that mana ōrite mō te mātauranga Māori be embedded in teaching, learning, and assessment. Thus, this research primarily aims to understand the development leading to the directive of including mātauranga Māori in education policies. For the English-medium secondary education settings, the second and third aims of this research are to explore what mātauranga Māori means to teachers of mathematics and to consider the connections between mātauranga Māori and mathematics teaching and learning. To investigate these aims, a semi-structured group discussion with four secondary mathematics teachers from an English-medium setting was conducted. The results of this thesis highlight the confusion and challenges secondary mathematics educators have toward defining, and subsequently, implementing mātauranga Māori in their classrooms. This thesis also found that there is enthusiasm and interest around learning how to ensure indigenous and marginalised learners reach their mathematics potential. Believing that indigenous worldviews have the potential to shift education outcomes for minority learners, this thesis adds to literature related to indigenous education, secondary mathematics education, and English-medium education of Māori learners.

year: 2023