Teaching strategies, beliefs, and behaviors of the Hmong and general education teachers in the technical college
Author(s):
Schulz, Rosemarie
Format:
Thesis
Degree granted:
Ph.D.
Publisher:
Ann Arbor : The University of Wisconsin - Madison, 1998.
Pages:
323
Language:
English
Abstract:
The purpose of this study was to understand how the Hmong students and the general education teachers in the two-year technical college experience and interpret the phenomena of teaching strategies, beliefs and behaviors and their impact on the students' academic success. Using a qualitative approach, the following questions guided this research: What are the students' perceptions of helpful teaching strategies, beliefs, and behaviors? How do the students describe a "good" teacher? What are the teachers' (identified as successful with the Hmong) perceptions of helpful teaching strategies, beliefs and behaviors? How did these teachers come to these beliefs? How are these perceptions similar and how are they different? Focus groups and individual interviews were conducted with 13 adult male Hmong students and three general education teachers from psychology, communications, and physics. The teachers had been identified by the Hmong students as those who were helpful to them. The Hmong students had been or were currently enrolled in the identified general education teachers' classes. Data was analyzed according to the research questions. General themes that emerged from the students' interviews included helpful teaching strategies, language and participation, inappropriate teaching strategies, and interpersonal and affective teacher/student relationships. The following teachers' general themes were identified: framework for learning, responding to learning style, inclusion, language and participation, and beliefs about the Hmong. For each theme, subthemes were identified and provided an explanation of that theme's meaning and relationship to the overall theme. Also included were how the perceptions of the Hmong students and general education teachers were similar and different. Application of the findings to the research literature was addressed.