RESEARCH PROPOSAL

Chapter 1 2 and 3

NAME; GOLESEDI KOKOLE

YEAR ;3A

STUDENT I.D;MCE/2013/052

TOPIC: EFFECTIVENESS OF THE IN-SERVICE

TRAINING IN TEACHERS IMPLEMENTATION OF
THE SCIENCE CURRICULUM

SUPERVISOR: MRS MARIPE

SCIENCE
Contents
CHAPTER 1.............................................................................................................................................2
1.1 INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................2
1.2 BACKGROUND OF THE PROBLEM................................................................................................3
1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM....................................................................................................4
1.3 PURPOSE OF THE STUDY..............................................................................................................4
1.4 OBJECTIVES..................................................................................................................................4
1.6 SIGNIFICANT OF THE STUDY........................................................................................................4
LITERATURE REVIEW..............................................................................................................................4
2.1 INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................5
THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE IN-SERVICE TRAINING TOWARDS THE NEW SCIENCE CURRICULUM....6
TEACHERS ATTITUDES OR FEELINGS ABOUT THE IN-SERVICE TRAINING...........................................6
WHAT TEACHERS THINK CAN HELP THEM TO DEAL WITH THE NEW CURRICULUM EFFECTIVELY.....7
3.2 RESEARCH DESIGN.....................................................................................................................8
3.3ETHICAL CONSIDERATION........................................................................................................8
3.4 SAMPLING PROCEDURES..........................................................................................................9
POPULATION OF THE STUDY.........................................................................................................9
SAMPLING TECHNIQUES.................................................................................................................9
3.5 DATA COLLECTING PROCEDURE............................................................................................9
3.5.1 INSTRUMENTS OF DATA COLLECTION.............................................................................10

CHAPTER 1

1.1 INTRODUCTION
 As the years passed and the world changes day and night, the ministry of Botswana also
see it vital to make improvements to its education system so as to go with the civilisation.
Innovations that took place affected the Junior Schools science curriculum. So in this
way, it was crucial for teachers to be provided with strategies to implement this
curriculum effectively and efficiently hence some measure put in place to help them.
This chapter consists of the background of the problem, statement of the problem,
purpose of the study, research objectives, the significant of the study, limitations of the
study and the definition of terms.

1.2 BACKGROUND OF THE PROBLEM

Some years back students were taught things that their respective teachers were trained
on. Teachers were doing their duty effectively and efficiently because they were having
greater knowledge of what they were doing. They were familiar with the topics that were
llergthjincluded on the Junior Certificate curriculum those years as they were prepared for
during their University times. Things changed as the years surpass, editions were made on
the Botswana Junior certificate science curriculum .New topics according to
Blenkin(2000) were introduced to the 3 years science curriculum with the intension of
improving the education system of the country. These kinds of topics were known to be in
the Senior school curriculum level but due to this curriculum innovations, they are now
included in the Junior Certificate Curriculum even though the Junior schools were not
deployed on such topics during their training.

Not only having the knowledge was the straining issue with this curriculum innovation,
the time interval was also a greater challenge. The duration of the school year is not
enough for the whole syllabus to be covered hence students end up sitting for their Junior
Certificate examinations without having taught some topics. However, the government
discovering this, decided to organise some workshops for the current working teaching
staff to be equipped and familiarised with the skills for implementing the science
curriculum for the sake of the young ones who will be leaders in the coming years hence
in-service training.Orton (1994) state that many challenges were linked with the need to
refine and acquire skills made more necessary by the curricula, as well as by the other
provincial and regional initiatives .The need to address such lack of skill is felt by most
acutely by those who are not recent graduates of teacher training programme or those
 who rely in primary on locally available professional development within the context of
the regular school year and setting.

As seeking assistance is a sign of strength, teachers asked for a hand in these curricula
because they were not in harmony with the learners’ results leading to in-service training.
Since there is a reason behind every action taken, the same thing applies to the Ministry
of Education, there was a driving force which made them modify the Junior School
science curriculum change in Botswana. Curriculum change is the ongoing trends which
invariably reflect change in the society at large. Through this change in curriculum also,
the Ministry of Education intended to increase the level of education in Junior School
learners. This includes developing numeracy, literacy and technological skill as nowadays
technology has taken the upper hand in the planet Earth. Ramatsui(1990) found out that
“notion of evolution makes continuous change of both a technological and a social kind
inevitable, so attempts have been made to ensure that the school curriculum responds to
changes occurring in the nature and values of society and that it is able to profit from
advances in our understanding of education itself.

In the 10th year of the twentieth century, new emphasis was placed on the role of
teachers .This new perspective requires junior school teachers to be active, to explore and
to reflect on their teachings and their students learning. The changes in teachers role are
caused by the development in educational science and growing awareness of the dynamic
structure of teaching and learning, and the demand that teachers renew themselves
(Dunzan 2006).So teachers need professional development to cope with all these
dynamic process.

1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

It has been observed that due to the change of the Junior certificate science curriculum, Junior
school science teachers in Botswana have been attending some workshops to be equipped
with some skills and knowledge as they have been struggling to deliver the content of the
new curriculum effectively and efficiently. Teachers have been leaving behind such topics
under the pretext that the topics are complicated as they were not familiar with them.
1.3 PURPOSE OF THE STUDY
The main purpose of the study is to ascertain information on the effectiveness of the in-
service teachers concerning the science curriculum change .This intends to improve the
teaching and the learning environment.

1.4 OBJECTIVES
The study intends to find out:

-the effectiveness of the in-service training towards the new science curriculum

-Teachers’ attitudes or feelings about this in-service training

-What teachers think can help them to deal with the new curriculum effectively

1.6 SIGNIFICANT OF THE STUDY

This study will be beneficial to the Junior school teachers and above all, to learners who are
taught hand who will be taught this new curriculum during their Junior school times.
Teachers will be able to deliver relevant content to learners effectively hence promoting
production of descent performance among students. In that way it will enhance professional
as well as personal development of teachers so as to be of benefit to student they teach.

Chapter 2

LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 INTRODUCTION
A number of studies have attempted to explore the links between the change in Junior school
science curriculum and the strategies used to implement it. In this part of the research,
different views of other researchers on the effectiveness of in-service training in teachers
implementation of the new science curriculum will be considered in order to hear their views
and findings. The way learners are taught and what they are taught this century, is much
different to that of the past centuries in the sense that there are editions and improvements
due to the Educational Policy change which took place in 1994 as stated by the Revised
National Policy of Botswana (1994) hence curriculum change. Curriculum change we mean
changes brought about on what teachers should deliver to learners and how they are expected
to do it. It also include any difference brought about in teaching premises, its syllabus,
scheme of work, aims and values, classroom practises and consequent thinking. The main
focus is on subjects to be taught so it guides the process of education. Curriculum innovation
therefore involves things like addition of subjects and new topics, the use of new teaching
material and the use of new teaching approaches. Ngununu(1988) point out that “curriculum
change is not a single entity; it is multidimensional.” he identifies three dimensions’ of
change namely, the use of new material, the use of new teaching approaches and the
alteration of belief such as pedagogical assumptions’ and underlying theories. Science
teachers were then taken on in-service training in order to deal with these changes. They
attended some workshops to be equipped with some skills and knowledge.

THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE IN-SERVICE TRAINING TOWARDS THE NEW

SCIENCE CURRICULUM.
In-service training is the process that goes continuously through the educational life of a
teacher. As one does not finish learning with graduation, likewise the teacher training goes on
improving with the passage of time. It means to achieve educational change that will exist
permanently. In-service education and training refers to all those activities that contribute to
professional growth and development of an employee GOLESEDI. The use of in-service
training was intended to continuously up-skill and update teachers knowledge in secondary
school science teachers in order to enhance the quality of education hence is the crucial
component of teacher development.

As stated by NewZealand(2000)in-service training include things like refreshing courses that

familiarised teachers with educational plans and programs. Education is extremely important
not only for the success of an individual but for the nation as well, so teachers do really need
this training. Hanusheek(2004) commented that, a successful teacher is required to be
equipped with the characteristics like the mastery of subject, professional training, sound
physical and mental health, devotion and dedication to his profession. During the in-service
training teachers are also equipped with teaching strategies. Strategic teachers are effective
teachers.GOLESEDI states that, teachers are called to help young people become fully
autonomous learners by acquiring key competences rather than memorising information.this
therefore show that indeed teachers do need to be equipped with skills to guide and lead this
future generation hence in-service training is effective. Harris and Sass(2001) who carried the
research on the effects of the teacher training on the teacher value added states “that training
of the teacher was positively associated with productivity in high school.” Their results
further revealed that more experienced teachers appeared more effective in teaching.
Another researcher Agrist and Lavy(2001) examined effects of in-service teacher training on
the student’s achievement without reducing class size or adding school hours revealed a
significant positive effect of this programme on the students test scores.Only those teacher
can shoulder this responsibility of the nation building, who are adequately prepared ,well
trained and have a positive attitude to carry the defined role of a teacher.

TEACHERS ATTITUDES OR FEELINGS ABOUT THE IN-SERVICE TRAINING

Ibrahim(2008)state that, generally speaking, there are indications that some teachers still rely
on the outdated conventional methods, techniques or approaches which they were used to
and hardly want to consider other options in accordance with what is being recommended or
prescribed in the new curriculum. Of courses in all the science related courses, Biology,
Chemistry, Physics etc, the emphasis has been on how to get the students to learn the
prescribed content, acquire necessary skills and do things way the scientist did in the past.

Another researcher; Nwachukwu (2000) found out that, the meager salaries that are paid to
the teachers presently may not allow many teachers to show interest. So this then makes
teachers no to be determined to their profession hence no motivation towards work or going
far with the profession and no intentions of doing their bestMulkeen(2007) also commented
that, some teachers interviewed that they had participated in an in-service teacher training but
felt that in-service professional they received prepare them for a lesser degree than their
initial training. From all the previous researchers, this then shows that indeed teaches has a
negative attitude towards this in-service training, they feel that in-service training eats away
their time which they could be using to push the syllabus even though the teaching methods
they apply at the classroom are not suited for the new ongoing curriculum hence this affect
students performance because the quality of education depend on the ability, hard work and
dedication of the teacher.
WHAT TEACHERS THINK CAN HELP THEM TO DEAL WITH THE NEW
CURRICULUM EFFECTIVELY

3.1 INTRODUCTION
This chapter is focused on the number of stages of how the data on the effectiveness of in-
service training in the teachers’ implementation of the science curriculum is collected. It
followed the logical sequence of; the research design which will state in depth the research
approach that will be used and the reason behind the choice, the ethical consideration which
explains how the respondents are affected in either way by the information they provide. The
sampling procedure instruments of data collection which consist of the population and how it
was selected, the data collection procedures and the instruments of data collection. Lastly is
the data analysis plan indicating how the data will be organised .

3.2 RESEARCH DESIGN

The study used the mixed method to collect the people’s opinions. As explained by
Orton(2004), the mixed approach of research is “an approach to inquiry involving collecting
both quantitative and qualitative data, integrating the two forms of data and using distinct
designs that may involve philosophical assumptions and theoretical frameworks.” The
method involves both the use of measurements and numerical or statistical analysis of data
and description of the phenomena hence the combination of qualitative and quantitative. The
mixed approach provides a more complete understanding of a research problem than either
approach alone, so the views of teachers on the in-service teacher training will be stated and
the statistics of students’ results after and before the in-service training hence overcoming of
limitation and weakness of a single design.

This method will be used because we want participants to share their views and interpret
them and on top of that examine the relationship between variable which yield an unbiased
results that can be generalized to some larger population. According to Blenkin (1999) the
mixed method opens the door to multiple methods, different assumptions, as well as different
forms of data collection and analysis. So in that way, the mixed approaches prevent the
philosophical debates about which is the best approach because there is a freedom to use any
of the methods, techniques and procedures typically associated with quantitative and
qualitative research design.

3.3ETHICAL CONSIDERATION
In presenting of the research, name of the school and of the interviewees are not going to be
mentioned but instead their views will be labelled in numbers. This how it will be put
“informant number 1 says...” in order to ensure protection of participants and respect for
them. The permission will be asked from the leadership of the school which is the head
teacher and the deputy head teacher in order to access their field freely and openly because
our informants include the Motswasele Junior school teachers and its respective learners. A
letter will be written to ask for access to the school first. The results collected will be honestly
reported together with the method and the publication status. Moreover, the results, data,
ideas and resources will be shared to promote openness for new ideas and for approval by
publishers.

3.4 SAMPLING PROCEDURES

POPULATION OF THE STUDY
Th0is is includes the total number of all individuals who have certain characteristics and are
of interest to the researcher. The research is not going to use all the learners and teachers to
collect data .From the accessible population, 15 students, a combination of both boys and
girls, 5 from each grade level and 5 teachers of Motswasele Junior School will be used as
respondents . So the target population is 20 informants to which the results of the study will
be generalized with, as they will be representing Junior schools in Botswana.

SAMPLING TECHNIQUES
The study is going to use the stratified random sampling. With stratified sampling, the
population is divided into groups, based on some characteristics. So from my study the
population is divided into Form 1’s , Form 2’s , Form 3’s and their teachers because they are
the ones which undergoes the curriculum implementation. Then, with each group, a
probability sample is selected, that is from each grade level, 5 students will be used as
respondents to represent the whole population. The informants will be divided into two
groups which is that of the teachers and of learners. Each group is known as strata.

3.5 DATA COLLECTING PROCEDURE

The information is collected from the teachers and the students of Motswasele Junior School
using the interview and questionnaire. The interviewer and the interviewee meet face to face
to interact and generate the ideas in a discourse that borders on mutual interest. In this setting
the interviewer poses oral questions to the interviewee to elicit oral response from him or her.
The type of the interview that will be used is the unstructured interview in order to create a
casual atmosphere to avoid the respondent from bottling up other information which might be
important while he or she thinks is not right information to be provided to the researcher.
This tool is preferred because it promotes flexibility and openness in the interaction hence all
crucial data can be achieved by the interviewer. The interview section will also be
accompanied by a tape recorder to insure validity because not all the information said by the
interviewee can be captured by the interviewer, so the recorded clip will be used for the
missed data.

After the interview the questionnaire papers which consist of both the open ended and the
closed questions were also distributed among all the selected respondents and were collected
the following day. All this data collection procedures will be done in the afternoon study. The
goal of the research is to rely as much as possible on the participants’ views of the situation
being studied. The more open ended the questioning, the better, as the researcher has the
chance to get more information of people ‘s views and what they do in life. So the opened
ended questions enable respondents to share their views hence validity.

3.5.1 INSTRUMENTS OF DATA COLLECTION

The tool that is going to be used to collect the data from the informants’ is the interview
together with the questionnaire. The questionnaires were self made that is the questions that
the researcher will use to get information from the informants was created by the researcher
herself. They were handed to the respondents by the researcher to ensure that the answers
given are not discussed, to aid the informants with instruction where they need clarification
and to reduce the number of spoilages. With the interview the researcher which is the
interviewer meet together with the interviewee at an agreed place. And a mobile was used to
record so as to recall the missed words during the interview.

3.6 DATA ANALYSIS PLAN AND PRESENTATION

The collected data will then be separated into qualitative and the quantitative information.
The statistical data which is numerical will be converted into percentages and presented in a
pie chart showing how the learners were performing before their teachers undertake the in-
service training and after the training. With the qualitative data, the responses of the
informants from interview will be analysed through content analysis.
REFERENCES

Blenkin.M. (1999). Change of the curriculum. London: Paul Chapman.

orton, A. (2004). curriculum innovation. london: british library cataloguing.

RESEARCH TOOL

A SURVEY OF THE EFFECTIVENESS OF IN-SERVICE TRAINING ON TEACHER’S SCIENCE CURRICULUM

IMPLIMENTATION

NAME OF THE RESEARCHER; GOLESEDI KOKOLE

DESGNATION; SCIENCE STUDENT, MOLEPOLOLE COLLEGE OF EDUCATION

TOPIC OF THE STUDY; EFFECTIVENESS OF IN-SERVICE TRAINING ON THE TEACHERS

IMPLIMENTATION OF THE SCIENCE CURRICULUM

This survey seeks to ascertain information about the effectiveness of the in-service training
concerning the change in Junior school science curriculum and come up with the best strategy to be
used in the implementation of the junior school science curriculum that is undertaken by teachers
who are already at work.

All the information will be kept confidential, therefore personal information is not crucial as your
identity shall remain unknown.

INSTRUCTION; Put a cross on the box that will represent your response. Answer to the best of your
observation and knowledge.

SECTION A

GENDER [ ] FEMALE [ ] MALE

WORKING YEARS [ ] 0-5 YEARS [ ]6-10 [ ]11 YEARS AND ABOVE

LEVEL OF EDUCATION [ ] DIPLOMA IN EDUCATION [ ] DEGREE IN EDUCATION

[ ] OTHERS. SPECIFY........................................................

SECTION B
Closed ended questions

1. Was the strategies to help in the curriculum change implemented at the right time?

Yes[ ] No[ ]

2.Are the strategies taught during the training beneficial?

Yes[ ] No[ ]

3.The workshop duration was suitable to what was taught

Yes [ ] No[ ]

SECTION C

Open ended questions

1.What are the activities that are involved in the in-service training?

......................................................................................................................................................

2. What are your views about this in-service training practice?

..................................................................................................................................................................

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3. Any barriers to the successfulness of this training?

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4.What do you think could be done to make the training effective or what are the strategies that you
think could have been brought on board during the training?

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5.What effect does this training has on students achievement?

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6.How long did the workshop last?

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*My deepest gratitude for your precious time*