Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Nepal and science education'

Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics (STEM) education programs are currently being introduced and expanded across “developing” nations. STEM programs often conflict with hegemonic gender norms, for example by targeting girls and women in male dominated societies. However, given the cultural complexity of STEM for girls, implementing educators are rarely asked their point of view on programs from abroad. This study explored the perceptions of educators in Nepal who participated in the Girls Get STEM Skills (GGSS) program, a program funded through the U.S. Department of State for 2015/2016. The 8-month program reached 254 girls across three government schools and included the donation of 30 laptops. In August, 2016, the researcher conducted one-on-one interviews and focus groups with 18 participants at GGSS school sites in Pokhara, Nepal. Qualitative data was gathered on educators’ perceptions of teacher roles, Nepal as a developing nation, gender imbalance in STEM, and the GGSS curriculum. The study argues that educators viewed educational topics through the lens of bikas, the Nepali word for development. This suggests that the principal impact of STEM programs—as part of larger development initiatives—may be the creation and reinforcement of new social meanings rather than the tangible impacts of the projects themselves.

This single-case study was to explore how Geographical Information Systems (GIS) could contribute to reducing dropout and non-attainment rates in Nepal’s secondary school system. GIS specialists analyzed information collected from parents on why their school-age children either dropped out or otherwise did not attain a secondary school education. The sample size in this study was eight, which included five sets of parent(s) whose children ages 13 to 16; either dropped out or otherwise did not attend a secondary school system, and three GIS specialists. Economics, teachers, and government were three themes that emerged from the parents’ interview. Interviews with GIS specialists reveled that GIS could assist in addressing dropout and non-attainment issues. In the context of Nepal, GIS is a still a new technology. The Government of Nepal lacks adequate infrastructure in areas of human resources, training and technical resources, and the central data repository system required for the proper use of GIS. GIS specialists recommended augmenting Nepal's information technology infrastructure by implementing a sustainable Enterprise GIS, and an Educational Management Information System. This research work recommends that identification of strategic solutions for student retention issues will require a concerted effort by not only governmental leadership, but also policy-makers, and non-government community leaders. The Government of Nepal may need to play vital role in overcoming existing economic and political barriers to improve IT infrastructure. GIS technology is certain to emerge as an important tool for making a difference in the planning process for minimizing dropout rates and enhancing enrollment ratios across the country. The recognition of both a need for change and the changes required are two important themes that emerged from the research study.

The purpose of this study is to find out what working procedures are used in Nepalese schools. We have also investegated teachers'views on how schools are organised and how the school system is structured in Nepal. Furthermore, we studied what kind of National Curriculum and other official documents that existed in Nepal, to support teachers when planning their teaching. In our study we used an ethnographic approach.

The literature review and our results show that the teachers in Nepal face several challenges in their profession. We believe that the central power of the government can in a future development be discussed in terms of de-centralisation of the school system. If so, it could be problematised how and what the teachers should teach and how the pupils'final School Leaving Certificate exam should look like.

Adventure is a relic of imperialism and the European romanticization of place. It has evolved from quests for domination of place and people (colonialism), to spiritual or consumeristic escape from the modern world, to an attempt to return or reconnect to nature. This paradigm implies that if humans must reconnect to nature, there is an inherent disconnect or a separation. This reconnection is rooted in romantic notions and Cartesian duality of man and nature. However, approaches towards adventure and tourism apart from such dominant Western mountain traditions focus on the critical and contextually based aspects of adventure experiences. These approaches, informed by indigenous meanings of place, traditional ecological knowledge, and ecofeminism, decenter human experience. Likewise, a feminist new materialist approach towards understanding place and materiality also allows for an awareness of entanglements and intra-active relationships of human and more-than-human to emerge, as did this research.

This dissertation examined place in the context of adventure trekking tourism in the upper Solukhumbu District, Nepal through a walking ethnography of the trails in and around Mount Everest base camp. This research was based on the following questions: 1. How can the future of development of Nepali Himalayan adventure tourism industry move forward ethically and with reciprocity towards the interconnectivity of mountains and people; 2. How can the adventure tourism industry consider the complexities of influence on a place—from both a direct impact and that of greater anthropogenic impacts? This research was grounded in the background and orientations of Everest tourism, which developed within discourse and materiality of Khumbu, shifting with local identities and meanings of place. Tourism in this context mangles in the edges of local and global cultures looming within immanent threats of the Anthropocene. Discourse composed and idealized from outside the mountain boundaries contributes to motivations for traveling to the Khumbu and perceptions of this place, in turn shaping the expectations of the tourist. In these contact zones mountains are sacred, a business venture, a personal challenge, place of revelation and spirituality, imperial conquest, neocolonial stomping ground, to scientific object of study. Within these complexities, this dissertation examined the concept of place and how meaning and agency develop in relation to adventure tourism experiences in Khumbu and the Anthropocene. A reciprocity develops in which human amongst more-than-human becomes embedded and inseparable. Shifting an anthropocentric gaze that privileges and sets matter apart as isolated and constrained by boundaries determined by humans, demonstrated the vibrant agential reality of more-than-human intimacies such as forgotten landscapes, rocks, dirt, glaciers, and altitude. Nature is not a passive object upon which humans descend, but rather an entangled subjectivity. This awareness allows for a rethinking of human enactments of Anthropocene and complicit behaviors of this epoch, reframing approaches to adventure. The conclusions of this research found that mountains—more-than-human—have agency and meaning and are not passive or in the background of human experience. This applies to a practical application of the research through a praxis tool for new materialist research and the adventure industry, in turn decentering the human/anthropocentrism and identified practices of tourism that are both sustainable and more inclusive of the entanglements of people and place.

While inclusion of students with disabilities has been a topic of debate for decades, uncertainty still exists concerning best practices for their participation in general education contexts (Carter et al., 2016). This study was designed to investigate teachers’ experiences and perceptions with inclusion in general education science classrooms. While students with disabilities are generally included in general education science classrooms today, statistics show students with disabilities are graduating from high school unprepared to major in science-related fields or to enter the workforce in science-related careers (Brusca-Vega, Alexander, & Kamin, 2014). Therefore, the content area of science was targeted for the purposes of this study. Five similar school districts in southwest Missouri were selected for this study. Middle school science and special education teachers were interviewed to obtain perceptions concerning inclusion of students with disabilities in general education science classrooms. Information gathered was compared with the literature reviewed to identify themes, ensure validity, and ascertain conclusions. After analyzing the data, it was revealed all students benefit both academically and socially when effective inclusive practices are incorporated in general education science classrooms. These benefits are dependent upon teachers’ self-efficacy and attitudes and collaboration between and among special education and general education teachers. Paraprofessional support for students with disabilities can contribute to successful inclusion in general education science classrooms.

One of the challenges in the field of computer science is teaching the subject at the high school level. Thirteen computer science teachers, one technology teacher and one department chair for technology were interviewed to determine how they thought computer science education could be improved at the high school level. The qualitative research addressed curriculum, professional development, educational computer science standards and frameworks, technology, and pedagogy. Institutional Review Board approval was obtained for the research. Nvivo was used to analyze the interviews. When the results were compiled, many teachers were concerned that there were low numbers of students interested in computer science. Having low numbers or students enrolled in computer science classes contribute to low numbers of computer science teachers. Different way to address these problems are proposed.

This descriptive case study examined the meanings public elementary school teachers (N = 13) made of learning to enact citizen science projects in their schoolyards in partnership with a local Arboretum. Utilizing Engeström’s (2001) framework of cultural-historical activity theory (CHAT), the Arboretum’s outreach program for area Title 1 schools was viewed as an activity system composed of and acting in partnership with the teachers. The major finding was that teachers designed and mastered new ways of teaching (expansive learning) and transformed their citizen science activity to facilitate student engagement and learning. I highlight four important themes in teachers’ expansive learning: (a) discussion, (b) inclusion, (c) integration, and (d) collaboration. Teacher learning communities formed when colleagues shared responsibilities, formed mentor/mentee relationships, and included student teachers and interns in the activity. This program could serve as a model for elementary school citizen science education, as well as a model for professional development for teachers to learn to teach science and Environmental Education outdoors.