A tale of two schools, a comparative case study of computer networking in two schools in the Toronto Board of Education

grantor: University of TorontoThis thesis is a case study of two urban schools, one located in the inner-city and comprised of a culturally-diverse non-mainstream student population, the other located in a middle class neighbourhood and comprised of an English-speaking, Canadian-born mainstream student population, to examine their approaches to computer networking. It seeks to identify the pedagogy accompanying the technology and the implications of this for mainstream and non-mainstream students. This approach is based upon the researcher's commitment to the use of appropriate technology within the context of a transformative pedagogy to promote equity of outcomes for all children. In particular, the thesis: (a) reviews the academic literature, policy documents, and arguments in the public debate on education reform; (b) proposes a theoretical model for the study of schooling environments, applies it critically in the context of comparative study, and reviews the validity and utility of the model. It uses the framework of traditional, progressive, and transformative pedagogy (Cummins & Sayers, 1995) to examine the data; (c) utilizes a qualitative research design. Incorporated into the design is an intervention known as action research, which was necessary in order to stimulate use of the Internet in the two schools. A technique known as portraiture is used for data gathering and presentation. Data sources consist of fieldnotes from participant observation in the schools, interviews, focus groups, and e-mail correspondence with teachers, principals, and students; and (d) examines three major issues identified in the study as salient for the comparison of the schools in their approaches to computer networking: 'pedagogy, literacy', and 'equity'. A major conclusion from this study is that approaches to computer networking in the two case schools depended largely on the individual pedagogy of the teachers. Their interactions with the students in the classroom proved to be a more significant factor in terms of the negotiation of identities than the level of sophistication of the technology. Their pedagogical orientation as evidenced in their statements and practices revealed, more than anything else, whether there was the potential for the goal of equity of outcomes for all children to ultimately be achieved.Ph.D