| My dissertation, using qualitative research methods, explores cultural models of pedagogy among 24 math and social studies, eighth grade teachers in Bangalore, South India. This research is based on the notion of cultural models developed in the fields of cultural psychology and social anthropology. It maintains that a teacher's thought and action can be considered as cultural models situated in local culture. Since cultural models in the data appear to be invoked according to the subjects taught, models of mathematics teachers and models of social studies teachers are discussed separately. Two dimensions of cultural models are highlighted, explicit and implicit. Within the dimension of explicit models, mental models are extrapolated from interviews with the teachers and expressive models are extrapolated from the observation of teachers' actions in the classroom. Explicit cultural models describe teachers' instructional goals, teachers' communication of knowledge and teachers' interaction with students. Implicit models uncovered are: acceptance of regulation; textbooks as perfect and imperfect containers of the syllabus; knowledge as static, unequivocal and inspirational; instruction as duty; hierarchy; and quality control. The interconnectedness and intersubjective sharing of cultural models are illustrated. Cultural models of teacher thinking and teaching unveiled in this study are also situated within the larger meaning system that surrounds both teachers and students. Four cultural entities in the larger meaning system, holism/regulation, hierarchical relationships, collective decision-making and a duty based code of living appear to constitute explicit and implicit models of teacher thinking and teaching. I conclude by discussing the implications of this thesis in the area of teacher thinking research, teacher education and for Indian education. |
