Teacher education

Concerns about climate change means that there is an urgent need to understand teachers' role in educating students about environmental issues and sustainability. However, little is known about teachers' environmental leadership and how that affects their competencies in the classroom, their general well-being and connections with nature, or what kinds of personality characteristics shape these teachers. A sample of current, future, and past Canadian teachers (N = 260) completed an online survey which included quantitative and qualitative questionnaires. Correlational and regression analyses determined teachers who possess environmental leadership qualities have a greater connection with nature, more positive well-being, and are more confident in their abilities to teach students outdoors. Furthermore, positive personality traits predict teachers' environmental leadership. Qualitative data revealed both structural and psychological barriers reduced the likelihood of teachers taking students outdoors and that greater support, resources and training are needed to enable teachers to implement more nature-based learning.

Author Keywords: competence, environmental leadership, nature relatedness, personality, teachers, well-being

Physical activity and classroom design changes are beneficial means to reduce stress, and enhance well-being. Results across some studies however, are mixed. Shanker Self-Reg™ supports the use of physical equipment and design as a means of managing arousal and tension levels. Previous research lacks rich description of educators' understanding of equipment and design, Self-Reg, and how this understanding affects the way it is implemented. In the current study, educators' understanding of Self-Reg, how this understanding influenced educators' approach to the school environment, and if one workshop was enough to inspire individuals to adopt a Self-Reg approach were explored using thematic analysis. Participants included educators from schools with beginner and intermediate-level experience in Self-Reg. The analysis produced eight themes and 8 sub-themes. Participants' knowledge of Self-Reg influenced their approach to their environments. Although one workshop may have inspired interest in the framework, it was not enough to shift educators' current practice.

Author Keywords: Arousal, Classroom, Self-Reg, Self-regulation, Stress, Teachers

This thesis is about the negative impacts on queer identities caused by the lack of diversity related to sexual orientation within Ontario Ministry of Education curriculum documents, both at the elementary and secondary level. Curriculum documents as well as policy documents are analysed and compared in order to address the lack of diverse sexual orientation representation within Ontario's education system. The study is guided by the question: "who benefits from the current representations of sexual orientation in the curriculum?" This conceptual study advances autobiographical methodology and the concept of Currere in relation to queer theory that allows researchers to analyse their educational experiences throughout the course of their lives and then become agents of social change. The results of my personal curriculum analysis have shown that curriculum documents lack diverse sexual orientation representation and that this has negative impacts how LGBQQ people identify and on the course of their lives.

Author Keywords: Curriculum, Homophobia, LGBQQ, Ontario Curriculum, Ontario Education, Sexual Orientation

This study investigates the potential for a responsive model of professional development in mathematics education which acknowledges how teachers perceive the value of professional learning, and examines how those perceptions are connected to teacher efficacy. Three fields of educational research ground this study: (i) professional development strategies in mathematics education, (ii) teacher efficacy, and (iii) self-determination theory and andragogy. Data collection and analysis involved four detailed case studies and a cross-case analysis of similarities and distinctions among the cases, in an instrumental-multiple-case study design. Results suggest: (1) some characteristics of professional development were consistently designated as high or low value, independent of efficacy ratings, (2) other professional learning experiences were valued relative to the participants' sense of efficacy at different times in their careers, and (3) characteristics of professional development designated as high value during periods of low efficacy were fundamentally teacher-centric, but during periods of high efficacy, they were fundamentally student-centric.

Author Keywords: efficacy, mathematics education, mathematics teachers, professional development, professional learning, teacher efficacy