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Examining the implementation of an English-only communications course in an international school
Author
Sexton, Michael Jude
Supervisor
Loh, Jason Kok Khiang
Abstract
When a new key innovation or practice is first implemented within an educational organization, the concerns of the implementers and facilitators play a vital role in how that implementation / practice will be realized and how targeted changes will manifest themselves in the final stages with end- users. Exploring the implementation of new English-only language materials at a Japanese international school, this qualitative study aims to first identify the concerns of those teaching with these new materials and then to see how those concerns impact their perceptions on aspects of both fidelity and adaptation which co-occur during implementation to better understand how these factors apply in settings within the real world.
The targeted innovation at the selected international school was chosen because it was in the initial stages of implementation at a time when the concerns amongst the teachers implementing the innovation were first manifesting themselves. These concerns were first captured using a Stages of Concerns Questionnaire (George, Hall, & Stiegelbauer, 2006) to identify the user profiles at the start of the project. Once the initial questionnaire was administered and the profiles set, a unit of work (an ESL language module being taught) was targeted with the concerns of the teachers being further studied through semi-structured interviews. Artefacts of their work during the selected period were also collected for further review.
These findings were then analysed and provided insight into how various aspects of fidelity and adaptation were occurring at the ground level and how the concerns of the teachers were impacting this.
The targeted innovation at the selected international school was chosen because it was in the initial stages of implementation at a time when the concerns amongst the teachers implementing the innovation were first manifesting themselves. These concerns were first captured using a Stages of Concerns Questionnaire (George, Hall, & Stiegelbauer, 2006) to identify the user profiles at the start of the project. Once the initial questionnaire was administered and the profiles set, a unit of work (an ESL language module being taught) was targeted with the concerns of the teachers being further studied through semi-structured interviews. Artefacts of their work during the selected period were also collected for further review.
These findings were then analysed and provided insight into how various aspects of fidelity and adaptation were occurring at the ground level and how the concerns of the teachers were impacting this.
Date Issued
2018
Call Number
PE1068.J3 Sex
Date Submitted
2018