Master of Arts (Educational Management)

This research studied Korean parents’ and students’ perception on factors affecting high school choices. A total of 267 students and 253 parents from Hangaram Autonomy Private High School (an independent school) and the students and parents of Bae Myung Private High School (a government subsidized school) participated in a survey which measured the eight dimensions of school choice consisting of Quality of Academic Instruction, Convenience, Extra Curricular Activity (ECA), Facilities, Nurturance, School culture, Selective Considerations and Future Orientation. Rasch Analysis was first used to linearized the measures and comparisons were made using independent t-tests and One-way ANOVAs with Post-hoc tests. The findings indicated that for both Korean parents and students, Nurturance was the most significant factor affecting school choice. Korean parents (in particular, mothers) however place greater emphasis on Nurturance than their children. The findings also show that female students place more emphasis on Nurturance in their educational experience than their male counterparts. In addition, Korean parents and students from independent schools place greater emphasis on Nurturance than those from government-subsidized schools. Further examinations of Wright Maps indicated that Korean parents view Nurturance in terms of ‘friendly environment’, ‘teachers’ care towards students’ and ‘good relationship between teachers and students’, while Korean students view Nurturance in terms of ‘good relationship between teachers and students’, ‘teachers’ care towards students’ and ‘pleasant and friendly environment’. These indicate that the nurturing role of the teacher and the nurturing environment in the school are important to both Korean parents and students when they make school choices which has led to several implications and suggestions recommended to Korean schools in this study.

The rapid advancement of technology has expanded the ways in which we acquire and communicate information. Multiliteracies is now the buzz word where pupils learn from a variety of information sources using technology. In schools, pedagogies are also evolving with changes in technology and teachers are encouraged to harness the potential of technology and think of innovative ways to make learning more interesting and engaging.

In the teaching of English Language for Secondary One pupils, a Multiliteracies Programme was introduced in Canberra Secondary School whereby pupils were exposed to comics, photography, videography, blogging and podcasting. Pupils transformed themselves into scriptwriters, podcasters and photographers during English lessons. They were taught how to use gadgets like digital cameras, iMacs and MP3s. Through these modes, pupils were more engaged in the lessons and become better writers, readers, speakers and thinkers.

The purpose of this research was to study Multiliteracies and its Effectiveness on the Learning of Written English Language. One Express and one Normal (Academic) class underwent the Multiliteracies Programme. At the same time, two respective equivalent classes, formed using on pre-English Language Diagnostic Test involving essay writing, were taught using the traditional method.

After 8 weeks, the pupils took the intermediate-English Language Diagnostic Test. Analysis of the results showed no significant difference in the scores of pupils who underwent the Multiliteracies Programme as compared to those who were taught using the traditional method. A post-English Language Diagnostic Test conducted after 18 weeks again showed no significant difference in the test scores for the Express classes as well as the Normal (Academic) classes. Longer exposure of the pupils to the Multiliteracies Programme did not produce any significant difference in the scores of written English Language essays as compared to those taught using the traditional method. There was also no significant difference in the impact of the Multiliteracies Programme on Express pupils and the Normal (Academic) pupils.

The purpose of this case study was to find out how teachers develop leadership qualities and characteristics in conceptualising and implementing a new teacher-initiated curriculum programme called Student Action Research (STARS).

This study described from the teachers' perspectives the process which enabled them to assume the roles and responsibilities of leadership. The study was conducted in a government secondary school in the East Zone. Five teachers were involved in the study. These teachers were part of the STARS team that conceptualized, designed and implemented the STARS with the Secondary One students.

STARS is a programme created by a team consisting of a few key personnel and a group of teachers who are interested in improving on the students' project work and also to introduce Action Research to the students. All teachers have been using Action Research as a tool to look into their own teaching and learning concerns in their classrooms. Hence, it is through this new curriculum created by these teachers for their students that the research is being conducted to look at teacher leadership development among these teachers and not the key personnel.

The findings of the study included the following:

1. Participants believe that they have assumed teacher leadership roles in designing, developing and implementing a new curriculum.
2. Principal's support is crucial to enable as well as to set the tone for how teachers to take on new responsibilities.
3. Protected time for regular meetings, discussions and collaboration is vital to create opportunities for teachers to grow into the role of teacher leaders.
4. Non-hierarchical work structure creates a climate that encourages teacher collaboration and involves teachers in decision making.
5. Collaborative and collegial work norms encourage openness and willingness to share that leads to intellectual discussion, evaluation, innovation and the development of teacher leadership.

In the 1980s we witnessed the dawning of the ‘Information Age’. Today, the use of information technology (IT) has become an integral part of our lives and in businesses. Education is no exception. With the introduction of Web 2.0 tools, such as weblogs, students are presented a new platform for interaction and exchanging ideas. A review of the literature however reveals few empirical studies examining the relationship of the use of weblogs and student learning. From the general literature on blogging which include mainly professional-related articles, four broad benefits of blogging can be derived and they are (1) bloggers can personalize their own blogs resulting in a sense of ownership and therefore accountability, (2) bloggers can remain anonymous allowing them the freedom to express their ideas without fear, (3) a blog is a good platform for students to collaborate resulting in the formation of learning communities, and (4) the act of blogging encourages students to think about what they have to write making them more reflective in their learning. In view of this, the purpose of this study is thus to investigate the factors that are of specific benefits of weblogs in student learning. To determine this, principal component factor analysis was performed using standardized residuals (linear Rasch measures in logits) rather than the non-linear raw scores. The findings revealed four factors, namely, efficiency, deliberation, de-personalization, and collaboration that explained students’ perceptions of the benefits of weblogs in their learning. It is posited that culture has an impact how these perceptions. Essentially, the findings revealed that the students were concerned with pragmatism, maintaining harmony with other students doing the course, and maintaining face or mianzi when blogging.

The need for teachers to be role models who have critical, inquiring mind and willingness to explore new teaching strategies to bring about more quality learning and teaching, and the need to customize curriculum so that teachers are able to experiment with innovative teaching methods and make the learning experiences of the students more engaging and meaningful, have prompted schools to re-evaluate the effectiveness of the one-shot workshops and short modular courses. Such needs have been given much attention in the arena of the professional development of teachers in Singapore today and have propelled the shift of professional development needs of teachers from the conventional one, which views teachers as knowledge transmitters to something which shows that teachers are facilitators for students to achieve lifelong learning skills.

To better respond to such moves, Ministry of Education of Singapore has put in place some professional development initiatives such as Learning Circles (LCs) and InnoWITs in the school system to provide opportunities for teachers to experiment and share their innovative teaching strategies.

Thus far, no study has been done to show the impact of the Learning Circles and InnoWITs on the teaching and learning of the teachers and the students.

Hence, this study investigated the impact of the LCs (Primary One) and the InnoWITs lessons (Primary Five) on the professional development of the teachers and the learning of the pupils.

This qualitative study was carried out with two groups of teachers and students. They are the Primary One (P1) and the Primary Five (P5) teachers and students. P1 teachers and students are involved with the LCs while P5 classes are involved with InnoWITs. These two projects were identified for this study as they were in line with Kolb’s Experiential Learning Cycle (1984) and they have in them the idea of teacher inquiry being a systematic, intentional inquiry about teaching.

A total of 16 teachers, 8 from P1 LCs and 8 from P5 InnoWITs participated in 2 focus interviews. A total of 3 one-to-one interviews were also carried out, 2 of which were with 2 P1 teachers and the other was with a P5 InnoWITs teacher. Besides, one direct observation was made when the P5 InnoWITs students were carrying out their activities. Archival documents such as teachers’ reflections, pupils’ survey forms and reflective journals were also collected.

It was concluded that the LCs and InnoWITs have provided good platforms for teachers to develop professionally as there were opportunities for teachers to reflect on their own teaching, to have insightful discussions and dialogues and to share teaching practices with other colleagues to improve their teaching and learning.

It was recommended at least 2 half-hour common free periods per week to be built into the curriculum time-table to allow teachers to hold discussions and dialogues regularly. In addition, it was also recommended that school would stay focus on the projects for at least 3 years so as to be able to feel their full impact on the professional development of the staff and the learning of the pupils.