Tangonyire, Raymond Chegedua (2014) Exploring Perceptions of “critical friendship” in Relation to the Environment for Learning in Two Senior High Schools in Ghana. MPhil thesis, University of Cambridge.
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Abstract
While there is growing interest in the use of the concept of critical friendship, there is still relatively little research on it. Most of the existing studies on critical friendship have concentrated on the contexts of even power relations such as practitioner-practitioner critical friendships. None of them seems to explore critical friendship in contexts of uneven power relationships such as teacher-student and teacher-Headteacher critical friendships. Accordingly, this study is an account of a qualitative exploratory phenomenological research undertaken in two urban public senior high schools in Ghana of critical friendship in relation to environment for learning. The common characteristics are that both schools are urban and with students of fifteen to nineteen years of age. They differ in terms of headship, composition of students, and boarding facilities: whereas school A is single-sex (male), full boarding school that is headed by a male, school B is a co-educational, semi-boarding school that is headed by a female. The study considers the extent to which critical friendship is part of the leadership, academic and social life of these schools. It explores how teacher-student and teacher-Headteacher critical friendships can contribute to a better community of learning. The main research instruments are series of semi-structured interviews with 22 participants including students, teachers, non-teachers and the Headteachers, and four focus group discussions with students and teachers. As a phenomenological study, the data are anlaysed and presented through descriptions and interpretations of the perceptions and experiences of the participants on critical friendship. Among the key findings are that critical friendship is part of the participating schools and it can contribute to a better community of learning through quality relationships and availability of physical facilities.
| Item Type: | Thesis (MPhil) |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | critical friendship; perceptions; environment for learning; school; phenomenology |
| Subjects: | L Education > LB Theory and practice of education > LB1603 Secondary Education. High schools L Education > LG Individual institutions (Asia. Africa) |
| Divisions: | Comparative |
| Depositing User: | JHI Africa |
| Date Deposited: | 08 Oct 2014 13:56 |
| Last Modified: | 21 Jun 2018 08:23 |
| URI: | http://thesisbank.jhia.ac.ke/id/eprint/112 |
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