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Knowledge and skills transfer from a postgraduate course in computer-based education to teaching practice

  • Authors: Vilakazi, Bella Phetheni
  • Date: 2008-07-07T09:39:35Z
  • Subjects: Transfer of training , Computer literacy study and teaching (Higher) , Computer assisted instruction
  • Type: Mini-Dissertation
  • Identifier: uj:10374 , http://hdl.handle.net/10210/773
  • Description: Emerging technologies are changing human beings as well as their social matrix in which they interact. The integration of ICT into education is an indication of societal and cultural change and as the social matrix becomes altered, it imposes different demands on the individual components of the greater community. It is often not easy for people to accept change and initially they resist it. In this inquiry, some of the tensions that exist in such an activity system have been identified. Vygotskian theory stipulates that human beings learn with and from each other through mediation of psychological and physical tools. The two participants in this inquiry, registered for the postgraduate course in Computer-based Education (CBE) to enable them to interact with the tools of ICT. The theoretical and practical components of the course also exposed them to the concept of learning through technology. The knowledge and skills acquired related to the use of computer technology in educational settings was supposed to help them to interact with technology at the school where they were employed to teach. In order to transfer skills and knowledge back to teaching practice the two participants needed the support of colleagues, school management, parents and other members of the greater community as defined by their activity system to enable them to achieve this. Through the analysis of a single focus group interview and two individual interviews, initial findings show that existing rules and policies within the school need to be adapted to accommodate the introduction of ICT at the school. It is also apparent from the findings that there are a number of tensions that influence the transfer of skills and knowledge from the postgraduate course to teaching practice. These tensions are inherent to the unique context as defined by the greater school community. The participants report that, due to a number of reasons, they are not interacting with ICT tools as much as they were expecting to. This is becoming frustrating to them as they are not applying what they learned. They feel that their knowledge is becoming redundant because of this. Most of the tensions between the various components of the activity system as defined in this inquiry originate from the insufficient preparation for the introduction of computers in educational settings at the school. Furthermore, participants report a lack of support from colleagues and management structures as well as parents and other parties who form part of the immediate community at the school. As a result of this it is difficult for them to integrate ICT into their daily teaching and learning activities. It is also interesting to note that the graduates of the CBE course also focus more on the upliftment of other staff members when they return to the school and are very concerned about getting these colleagues to learn basic computer skills. As a result they do not integrate the technology into their teaching and learning. Furthermore, when they do get the learners to use the computers at the school they still focus on basic skills not related to the teaching and learning of their subject or learning area. These, and a number of other issues, are described in the findings of this inquiry and explained in terms of tensions that arise between the various components of this activity system. , Dr. G. Lautenbach
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Transfer of learning: from the computer course to the practice setting

  • Authors: Khoza, Lindiwe Mhakamuni
  • Date: 2008-06-10T11:45:37Z
  • Subjects: Transfer of training , Computer literacy study and teaching
  • Type: Mini-Dissertation
  • Identifier: uj:2557 , http://hdl.handle.net/10210/600
  • Description: Computer literacy is the ability to use computers as tools. Computers affect peoples’ lives. Hodge and Miller (1997: [Online]) describe the impact of computers in people’s lives and indicate that “information and communication technologies are rapidly changing the way individuals live, firms do business, governments administer and nations interact.” Mangena, the Deputy Minister of Education, claims that, “today, basic computer literacy skills are becoming just as important as acquiring literacy and numeracy skills” (DoE, 2003: [Online]). Increasingly, teachers are also expected to use ICT for their teaching, administration and also in the classroom. In the South African situation, many teachers are ill-prepared to use computers, as they have no experience or training in this regard. However, several training programmes exist that train teachers for Educational ICT. The ultimate aim is that teachers will transfer the skills acquired at such training programmes for teaching and learning in their own contexts. Hence, the purpose of this study was to explore the ways in which teachers transfer the skills that they learnt at a computer course to their work environment. The main findings from data indicated that a number of factors and conditions influence the transfer of skills. Primarily, the course presenter’s style, course content, support from management and peers, time for practice, learning in context, students’ confidence, nature and scope of assessment, accessibility to resources and conditions under which students transfer skills, have great influence in the transfer of learning. , Prof. D. van der Westhuizen
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Theories of multiple intelligences and learning assessment for deep learning in higher education

  • Authors: De Jongh, Charles
  • Date: 2012-06-07
  • Subjects: Multiple intelligences , Education, Higher , Cognitive styles , Educational evaluation , Transfer of training
  • Type: Thesis
  • Identifier: uj:8703 , http://hdl.handle.net/10210/5056
  • Description: M.Ed. , This thesis reports on an action research project carried out in a Private Higher Education Institution and relates to the contribution of theories of multiple intelligences to the promotion of deep learning through the assessment of learning. It is argued that theories of multiple intelligences, while having been widely applied to teaching, have not been meaningfully applied to the assessment of learning or to the promotion of deep learning. Therefore, the problem for research was that insufficient consideration has been given to the possible contribution of theories of multiple intelligences to the promotion of deep learning through the assessment of learning, and that there is a gap in the application of those theories to the assessment of learning. Consequently, the purpose of the research was to examine the potential contribution of theories of multiple intelligences to the promotion of deep learning through the assessment of learning. The first aim of the research was to consider the assessment of learning and to demonstrate how deep learning may be promoted through assessment. Secondly, the research explored the potential contribution of theories of multiple intelligences to the assessment of learning; while the third aim considered the demands of deep learning and theories of multiple intelligences in relation to assessment. The fourth aim was to propose a theoretical framework for assessment for the promotion of deep learning in the context of theories of multiple intelligences; while the fifth aimed to derive related principles. The final aim was to apply the derived principles practically to a course of study. The theoretical framework for the research was built on a study of the literature relating to the assessment of learning, deep learning and theories of multiple intelligences. As the researcher was a practitioner, developing educational practice, a practitioner action research design was utilized, enabling the location of the research within a specific educational context and allowing for the development of a specific response to the research problem. Practitioner action research was particularly advantageous because it allowed for the improvement of practice, as v well as the generation of new knowledge with respect to the assessment of learning, deep learning and theories of multiple intelligences. Drawing the study of the literature and the empirical research together, the research findings were that theories of multiple intelligences have a contribution to make to the assessment of learning; learners were aware of and appreciated the variety available in assessment items; learners need clear guidance with respect to technical requirements for assessment options; theories of multiple intelligences make a positive contribution to the construction of assessment items that promote deep learning; and assessment that is shaped by multiple intelligences contributes to the promotion of deep learning in certain learners. The scholarly contribution of this study lies in that it has developed the application of theories of multiple intelligences to the assessment of learning in a manner that contributes to improved practice with respect to the assessment of learning in general and specifically to the promotion of deep learning through the assessment of learning, with application to both the higher education sector in particular and all education in general.
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Transformative learning and mapping creativity : a case study of South African designer

  • Authors: Dreyer, Anne-Mare
  • Date: 2011-11-30
  • Subjects: Adult learning , Creative ability , Transfer of training , Experiential learning
  • Type: Thesis
  • Identifier: uj:1760 , http://hdl.handle.net/10210/4114
  • Description: M.Ed. , The purpose of this study was to explore whether the development of exceptional creativity could be linked to transformative learning. Although the theory of transformative learning, as defined by Mezirow in 1978 from his study of women returning to college, has stimulated much discussion in the field of adult education, a review of the literature on transformative learning and the study of creativity revealed no descriptions of transformative learning linked to the development of creativity in an adult. Mezirow claims that our experiences do not have meanings in themselves, but that we bring to our experiences an accumulation of past experiences, knowledge and learning. The meanings we make out of our experiences are thus socially constructed and context-dependant. This study explored whether the "meaning-making" of experience, and the way in which it is construed, validated and reformulated, could be linked to the development of exceptional creativity. A qualitative design was used utilizing an interpretive case study as research format. The case, an African designer was selected purposefully on the basis of two criteria: she is· exceptionally creative and her life has been characterized by major transitions. A series of in-depth interviews were conducted with the case as the method of data collection. The interviews focused on the case's life-story, and aimed at establishing whether her life-story could be linked to phases of "meaning becoming clarified," and whether transformative learning may have occurred in her creative development. The data was analysed using the constant comparative method of data collection. A main finding emerged from the data. The phases of transformation were set off by more than one disorienting dilemma which had its roots in the changing sociopolitical context of South Africa. As speculated, the development trajectory of the case's creativity can be linked to transformative learning. From the data it is evident that the development of exceptional creativity is intertwined with the phases of transformative learning and that both processes share numerous commonalities, compati~ilities and blurred boundaries. Although it must be kept in mind that this investigation was based on a single case, the study indeed demonstrated that there is a relationship between transfonnative learning and the development trajectory of exceptional creativity in an adult. Furthermore, if creativity is to be viewed as a multidimensional construct, and creative accomplishment as representing the interaction or confluence among these dimensions, then the development of exceptional creativity in this particular case can be seen as an expression of transfonnative learning. The finding not only provides a description of the development of exceptional creativity linked to transfonnative learning, but also reveals the significance of transfonnative learning as a process for the study of creativity in which creativity can be seen as an expression of the transfonnative learning process.
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The transfer of educational ICT knowledge and skills from the university courses to school practice

Enkele aspekte van die geldigheidsbepaling van 'n leer- en studiestrategievraelys by eerstejaarstudente

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