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The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore the experiences and perceptions of faculty members who recently implemented Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) in a rural high school in Georgia. Many students bring electronic devices to school despite policies banning or limiting their possession and use. Some schools have recently implemented BYOD guidelines that allow the use of these devices to enhance the learning environment. In-depth interviews, participant journals, and a concluding focus group discussion were used to better understand the lived experiences of the faculty members during their transition to BYOD. Themes discovered through the data indicated that a lack of adequate faculty preparation for BYOD contributed to difficulty in managing the transition during the first year of mandatory implementation. The re-evaluation and changes in BYOD policy between year one and year two made BYOD implementation voluntary and empowered the participants to adapt to BYOD through a process of trial and error and ongoing adjustments.

Dissertação apresentada à Escola Superior de Educação de Lisboa para obtenção do grau de Mestre em Ciências da Educação - Especialização em Educação Especial, Domínio Cognição e Multideficiência Um dos desafios atuais no nosso sistema de ensino é construir uma escola de todos para todos, uma escola inclusiva que respeite a heterogeneidade dos alunos e que lhes permita aceder a respostas educativas adequadas. Com as novas politicas, educativas a inclusão de alunos com multideficiência no contexto do sistema de ensino regular, tem constituído um desafio maior aos professores e à escola. Este desafio exige mudanças quer nas atitudes e práticas dos agentes educativos, quer nas estruturas do sistema de ensino ao nível organizacional e na gestão das respostas educativas. Neste contexto, o presente estudo pretende caracterizar as conceções dos professores de educação especial e dos professores do ensino regular face à inclusão de alunos com multideficiência e como se organizam as respostas educativas a estes alunos. O trabalho desenvolveu-se de acordo com a metodologia de estudo de caso, centrado em oito entrevistas, a professores do 1º, 2º e 3º ciclo do ensino regular e a professores de educação especial de duas unidades de apoio a alunos com multideficiência. Como técnica de recolha e tratamento de dados, utilizámos a entrevista semiestruturada e a análise documental, que foram submetidas a análise de conteúdo seguindo os passos recomendados para a mesma. Concluímos que os professores não colocam reservas à inclusão dos alunos com multideficiência no sistema regular de ensino. São da opinião que devem ter igualdade de oportunidades como os restantes alunos e que estes são uma mais-valia à escola pois permitem o desenvolvimento de competências sociais e o reconhecimento da diferença. A inclusão para estes professores, centra-se no processo de socialização e normalização. No entanto os professores só consideram possível a inclusão, quando a escola estiver dotada de recursos adequados e os professores, bem como restantes agentes educativos, tenham formação na área das necessidades educativas especiais. - Abstract One of the actual challenges in our education system is to have a school that suits everyone, a school that respects differences amongst students and that allows proper educational measures. The inclusion of multi-disabled students in regular schools has been a major challenge to teachers and schools. This measure demands new attitudes and procedures in regards to organisation and management in the educational structures. The purpose of this study is to identify teachers perspectives regarding the inclusion of multi-disabled students in regular schools and how the plan of action is managed, whether they work in special education or regular education. This assignment was developed according with study cases methods and it consists in eight interviews to teachers from first, second and third cycles of regular education and to teachers of special education that work with multi-disabled children. The qualitative data collection and processing followed the semi-structured interviews and document analysis methods. The study conclusion is that teachers are not against the inclusion of multi-disabled students in regular schools. They defend equal opportunities for all students and that this inclusion is a benefit as it allows the development of social competencies and the recognition of difference. For these teachers the inclusion is centred in a socialisation and normalisation process and they believe that full inclusion is only possible when the schools have the right resources and both the teachers and all educational agents as well, have training in special education.

The present study aimed to explore the teachers' and learners' perspectives on learner role in EFL classrooms. Thus, in order to have a better description of the research issue under investigation, six major issues focusing on classroom language learning and teaching process were identified as the main areas of concern in the present study. Hence, the 'learner role' in: goal and objective setting process, textbook selection, language teaching methodology, language instruction, learning strategies and evaluation process were investigated all through the study. The present study was structured in the frame of research questions which guided the study, this would also help the learner to ease the way during the interpretation of the research findings. In order to probe into the research issue under investigation, various data collection instruments were used; questionnaires, interviews, classroom observations and field notes. Questionnaires were the leading instruments of the study; and interviews, classroom observations and field notes also helped to get a deeper understanding regarding the teachers' and learners' perspectives on learner role in EFL classrooms. The data was elicited from 300 students and 40 teachers of English from five different public primary schools in Bursa, Turkey. The analysis of the data emerged some intriguing results. It was found out that the teachers and learners have similiar perspectives regarding the learner role in goal and objective setting process held in EFL classrooms. Both the teachers and learners strongly believe that defining the goals and objectives of a lesson is a matter not only beyond students' abilities but also out of their responsibilities in EFL classrooms. When it comes to the learner role in textbook selection process, students are on the point of the view that although the textbook selection procedures are carried out by their teachers, they still want to involve in that process. On the other hand, many of die teachers do not believe in the importance of student involvement in textbook selection process. Another finding appeared in the study is that neither the students nor the teachers Ihink that students can be participated in the methodological issues of the EFL classrooms. Most of the students tend to believe that the primary aim of students in the instruction process is to receive the information presented by the teacher. However, what students believe about their own role is somewhat different from the perspectives of most of the teachers who want their students to involve in critical thinking processes by asking questions during the lesson. Regarding the role of learners in the development of language learning strategies, it was found out that a great majority of teachers and students have a strong preconception that the best language learning strategies are the ones that are designed and provided by tiie teacher in EFL classrooms. When it comes to the role of the learners in the evaluation process, it was discovered that while students believe that they can evaluate their own progress with the absence of their teacher by means of practices and quizes, the teachers disagree with the idea that students can not play an active role in evaluating their own progress in EFL classrooms. In the light of all these findings, it is suggested that both the teachers and the learners need to broaden their perspectives on 'learner role' in EFL classrooms, and mthey should learn to be respective to each other's beliefs and perspectives in EFL classrooms.

Teachers’ continuing professional development (CPD) is increasingly becoming a priority in most countries throughout the world. It is widely viewed as the most effective approach to prepare practitioners adequately and to improve their instructional and intervention practices when they are in the workforce. Despite the general acceptance of CPD as essential to the improvement of education, reviews of professional development research constantly point out the ineffectiveness of most programmes. Furthermore, many teachers express dissatisfaction with the professional development opportunities they get in schools and insist that the most effective development programmes that they have experienced were self-initiated. It appears that many CPD programmes have yet to be implemented on the basis of understanding professional development from the perspective of the participating teachers: What drives them to enlist in the programmes and how can such programmes make a difference to the teachers and their classrooms? The present study seeks to turn research back to the beneficiaries of professional development – the teachers. It explores teachers’ perspectives of CPD in general and what it means to them personally and in the context of their work. We focus on a group of teachers who were part of a science and mathematics professional development intervention for six years and explore the teachers’ conceptions of the intervention, its meaning for them and their work, and its impact on their classroom practices and students over the period of intervention and beyond. We also explore, in greater detail, data from an extensive and longitudinal study of three teachers who were part of the CPD programme. In discussing our data, we assert that CPD – however well intentioned and executed – will be received differently by the participating teachers because of their different personal circumstances and investment(s) in the process. We argue that the more there is alignment between the personal circumstances and motivations of the teachers and the CPD intervention, the more likely it is that the outcomes will be meaningful for the participating teachers – with better possibilities for sustaining the impact of the intervention.

Background Effective teaching in medicine is essential to produce good quality doctors. A number of studies have attempted to identify the characteristics of an effective teacher. However, most of literature regarding an effective medical teacher includes student ratings or expert opinions. Furthermore, interdisciplinary studies for the same are even fewer. We did a cross-sectional study of the characteristics of effective teachers from their own perspective across medicine and dentistry disciplines. Methods A questionnaire comprising of 24 statements relating to perceived qualities of effective teachers was prepared and used. The study population included the faculty of medicine and dentistry at the institution. Respondents were asked to mark their response to each statement based on a 5-point Likert scale ranging from strongly disagree to strongly agree. These statements were grouped these into four main subgroups, viz. Class room behaviour/instructional delivery, interaction with students, personal qualities and professional development, and analysed with respect to discipline, cultural background, gender and teaching experience using SPSS v 13.0. For bivariate analysis, t-test and one way ANOVA were used. Multiple linear regression for multivariate analysis was used to control confounding variables. Results The top three desirable qualities of an effective teacher in our study were knowledge of subject, enthusiasm and communication skills. Faculty with longer teaching experienced ranked classroom behaviour/instructional delivery higher than their less experienced counterparts. There was no difference of perspectives based on cultural background, gender or discipline (medicine and dentistry). Conclusion This study found that the faculty perspectives were similar, regardless of the discipline, gender and cultural background. Furthermore, on review of literature similar findings are seen in studies done in allied medical and non-medical fields. These findings support common teacher training programs for the teachers of all disciplines, rather than having separate training programs exclusively for medical teachers. Logistically, this would make it much easier to arrange such programs in universities or colleges with different faculties or disciplines.

This paper reports on the findings of a mixed method comparative study investigating teachers’ perceptions of gender identity in Netherlands and Turkey. Data was collected via an online survey from 506 teachers followed by a focus group interview with a small subgroup. An analysis of the results of qualitative data focus on teacher experiences with and attitudes to gender identity, particularly in relation to practices. Findings indicate that despite the culturally diverse background, the participant teachers from both countries seemed to agree on some of the items; however, Turkish teachers were generally more conservative and less tolerant to ‘the other’. The presentation will at the end discuss the urgent need, especially in Turkey, for more research that explores how teachers can learn to become a guide to ‘the other’, and the extent to which this increases the student motivation and success. Teachers in Turkey are not deliberately obstructive, but they lack the knowledge to perform this role of guiding students with a different sexual preference. The first step is providing training for school staff to improve rates of intervention and increasing the number of supportive teachers, as well as other staff available can be the first resulting in a healthier and happier community. It is important to find ways to train teachers with the skills and attitudes that will create more vibrant and diverse schools. RESUMO Este documento (estudo, ensaio, tese) relata as conclusões de um estudo misto comparativo que investiga as perceções de professores sobre a identidade de gênero na Holanda e na Turquia. Os dados foram coletados por meio de inquérito online a 506 professores seguido de uma entrevista de grupo, focada num sub grupo. Uma análise dos resultados dos dados qualitativos foca nas experiências e atitudes de professores relacionadas com identidade de gênero, particularmente em relação às suas práticas. Os resultados indicam que, apesar da experiência culturalmente diversa, os professores que participaram de ambos os países parecem concordar em alguns pontos; no entanto, os professores turcos são geralmente mais conservadores e menos tolerantes para com “o outro”. O estudo (documento, ensaio) aborda a necesssidade urgente, especialmente na Turquia, de mais pesquisa que explore a forma como os professores podem aprender a se tornar num guia para “o outro”, e o quanto isto poderá aumentar a motivação e o sucesso do aluno. Os professores na Turquia não são deliberadamente obstrutivos, mas falta-lhes o conhecimento para poder desempenhar o papel de orientar estudantes com uma preferência sexual diferente. O primeiro passo é providenciar formação ao quadro de funcionários da escola para melhorar as taxas de intervenção e aumentar o número de professores assistentes, bem como outros funcionários disponíveis resultarão numa comunidade mais saudável e mais feliz. É importante encontrar como formar professores com as competências e atitudes que criarão escolas mais vivas e com mais diversidade.