Teacher Education and Professional Development Commons^™

“I Can Math, Too!”: Reducing Math Anxiety In Stem-Related Courses Using A Combined Mindfulness And Growth Mindset Approach (Magma) In The Classroom, Tashana S. Samuel, Sebastien Buttet, Jared Warner

Publications and Research

Math anxiety has become an alarming social justice concern, as it results in negative academic consequences, contributes to disinterest and lack of persistence in STEM programs for underrepresented students, and limits their opportunities in STEM careers. According to research, this fear of math occurs long before students begin working on math problems. When high-math anxious students encounter math situations, anticipation anxiety consumes working memory capacity, inhibits learning, and causes them to severely underperform on mathematical tasks. However, very few studies have been conducted to embed psychological interventions in the classroom in an effort to mitigate both anticipation and execution anxiety. …

The Mitigation Of In-Group And Outgroup Biases: Understanding The Perceptions Of Educators On The Contact Approach Theory, Brigitte Blazys

Dissertations

The contact approach theory was introduced in the 1950s, by Allport, as a method to mitigate biases. Since then, many DEI practitioners in the United States have formed alliances to create a social justice movement to combat racism, prejudice, and biases in our society. Nevertheless, little research has been conducted in the contact approach theory as these biases, initially observed as in-group and outgroup biases, originate in the early years of life. To begin to fill this gap in the literature, the purpose of this study was to better understand and identify to what extent, if any, prekindergarten through third …

Comparing Participants In Discipline And Non-Discipline Specific First-Year Seminars: A Study On Student Characteristics, Expectations, And Changes In Major, Caroline Kaufmann Twachtman

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

First-year seminar (FYS) courses tend to focus on preparing students for successful academic and social integration into the college environment. Many of the studies on FYS courses focus on measuring outcomes such as college grades, retention, and graduation rates. While there is notable documentation of several different types of FYS courses, relatively few studies compare the different types of FYS courses. What, if any, differences might there be in the profiles of students who take either type of course? Is there a certain type of student that enrolls in the discipline-specific course, or a certain type of student that enrolls …

Supervision Utilizing Expressive Art Activities: A Road To Group Cohesion And Professional Learning, Mi-Hee Jeon, Charles E. Myers

Journal of Counselor Preparation and Supervision

This paper shares research outcomes in which Master’s practicum students participated in supervision utilizing art activities. To explore in-depth experiences of the participants and make sense of their perceptions on art activity-based supervision, Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) was chosen as analysis for this study. Semi-structured interviews with the participants were performed and collected as data. As results, two constructs—facilitating group cohesion and professional learning—and five themes corresponding to each construct were identified. In discussion, the power of visualization through art activities, the opportunity to reflect through expressive arts and its influences, and group cohesion facilitated by supervision using art tasks …

Mentoring Doctoral Students In Counselor Education For Research Competence: A Developmental Perspective, Nayoung Kim, Eunae Han

Journal of Counselor Preparation and Supervision

Doctoral students in counselor education should develop varying competencies in the degree program including research capabilities. However, there is a dearth of research addressing different characteristics of the students based on their research competence development. This article aims to provide a detailed guideline using a developmental approach that counselor educators may use in research mentorship and doctoral students can refer to in understanding their development and validating their struggles. Specifically, the authors used three themes including (a) tasks, (b) self-efficacy, and (c) researcher identity in the comprehensive framework for counselor educators-in-training researcher development (CFCRD). Implications for counselor educators and counselor …

Engaging Pre-Service Teachers In Interactive Social Justice-Themed Read-Alouds, Kayln Hoppe

Educational Considerations

This qualitative case study explored how pre-service teachers responded to social justice-themed picture book read-alouds in an undergraduate literacy course. Data were collected from personal observations, semi-structured focus group interviews, and student work, and were analyzed using inductive analysis. Findings indicate how reading multicultural literature aloud plays an important role in post-secondary students’ content understanding and preparation for a career in teaching. This case study may inspire teacher educators to incorporate multicultural read-alouds into higher education coursework.

Heart-Led Behaviors Of Exemplary Unified School District Superintendents, Sepideh Yeoh

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this phenomenological study was to describe how exemplary K-12 school district superintendents lead from the heart using Mark Crowley’s four principles (building a highly engaged team, connecting on a personal level, maximizing employee potential, and valuing and honoring achievements) to accomplish extraordinary results in their organizations.

Methodology: This study utilized a qualitative phenomenological inquiry methodology to study the behaviors of eight exemplary K-12 school district superintendents in Southern California. Open-ended semistructured interviews were conducted utilizing a virtual platform. Responses from interviews in conjunction with observations and appropriate artifacts including, meeting agendas, memos, and newsletters provided …

“A Tale Of Two Classrooms”: Designing Culturally-Relevant Hip Hop Curriculum To Support Stem Identity Of Underrepresented Students, Jessica Mcclain, Rebecca Colina Neri Ph.D

Northwest Journal of Teacher Education

This article explores how educators can contribute to the development of STEM identity in historically marginalized groups by using critical frameworks and pedagogies like Funds of Knowledge and Critical Hip-Hop Pedagogy as a curricular tool to counter traditional teaching practices. The authors amplify the importance of cultural spaces that support educators in examining aspects of power, access, and cultural awareness in STEM classrooms to increase student participation and acquisition of STEM knowledge. This article provides a guided activity named “A tale of two citiez” as an example of how educators can act towards (re)conceptualizing and (re)imagining STEM classrooms.

Connecting The “Real-World” To The Math Classroom: Implementing Professional Development For Mathematical Modeling, Rejoice Akapame

Northwest Journal of Teacher Education

This qualitative research study focused on the changes in classroom pedagogy and content of rural mathematics teachers who engaged in a year-long professional development project focused on mathematical modeling. During a 2-week summer institute, teachers solved mathematical modeling problems as learners and then went through an iterative design process of creating, testing and refining lessons for classroom implementation. The lessons were implemented during the academic year. Results of this study indicate that teachers developed a willingness to move from traditional lecture and replication as the main form of pedagogy. Instead they incorporated more group tasks, alternate assessments, and created their …

Critical-Thinking Experiences Of Chinese And U.S. College Students: A Comparative Analysis Using Phenomenology, Lu (Wendy) Yan

The Qualitative Report

In this study, I investigated the critical-thinking experiences of seven Chinese international and five U.S. students attending a large public university in the United States. I conducted a comparative analysis of these groups’ different experiences with critical thinking in this context, while closely following the twin methods of epoché and reduction in phenomenology to remain attuned to any personal biases. My results indicated that Chinese and U.S. students experienced critical thinking differently on the basis of the four universal existentials noted by van Manen (2016): lived experiences of relation (self–other), materiality (things), time, and space/place. Specifically, the Chinese students tended …

Flags Of Africa: Promoting Cultures & Connecting Math Concepts, Kelly W. Remijan

Publications & Research

Objectives

1. To share ideas for using flags of Africa and technology to engage students with math concepts: counting, fractions, percentage, aspect ratio, linear equations/inequalities, domain/range, angles/distances/slope, classifying triangles, area of polygons, slope, parallelograms, & coordinate geometry.
2. To highlight technology such as Google Slides, Google Sheets Pixel Art, GeoGebra, Desmos, and CNC Machines that help enrich the teaching of math concepts.
3. To provide ideas for promoting discussion of culture, history, & geography within the math classroom.

Trauma-Informed Teaching: Professional Development For School Staff, Heather Roesinger, Chelsea Williams, Tammy L. Hughes

Graduate Student Research Symposium

Trauma is defined as a response to a negative event that includes both an emotional and physiological component. Two thirds of children experience some form of a traumatic event by the age of 16 (Cavanaugh, 2016). Many youth with disabilities, particularly emotional and behavioral, have experienced trauma and show visible signs of difficulty in the classroom (Cavanaugh, 2016). Trauma-informed schools take a strengths-based approach and focus on building safe, positive environments and relationships. Research has provided evidence that a trauma-informed approach can be instrumental in supporting positive outcomes of children exposed to trauma, but school staff feel ill-equipped to support …

The Impact Of Teacher And Student Racial And Ethnic Matching On Student Outcomes: A Quantitative Study, Daryl Minus-Vincent

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

This study aimed to investigate the predictive relationship of teacher race on student outcomes in New Jersey public schools, as measured by the New Jersey Student Learning Assessment (NJSLA), chronic absenteeism, and graduation rates. Specifically, the relationship between teacher and student race matching with Black students, the schoolwide population of students, and a subset of urban schools was examined. The study investigated the potential of race matching to address the problem of racial and ethnic student achievement gaps. Studies indicate that pairing students with teachers with whom they share the same race and ethnicity can lead to increased cultural understanding …

Collaborative Conversations For Culturally Sustaining, Socially Just Pedagogy: Creating A Safe Space For Dialogue And Practice, Sarah N. Newcomer, Kathleen M. Cowin

Diversity, Social Justice, and the Educational Leader

Given the increasing number of culturally and linguistically diverse students in our nation’s schools (NCES, 2020), we need teachers and school leaders who teach in inclusive and socially just ways. In this qualitative case study (Merriam & Tisdell, 2016), we paired up leader candidates (LCs) and teacher candidates (TCs) in a series of collaborative conversations focused on culturally sustaining, socially just pedagogy (CSSJP) (Authors, 2018), to learn how bringing teacher and leader candidates together may support their understandings of enacting CSSJP. Collaborative conversations may help TCs and LCs share the responsibility of doing the challenging, but necessary, work of enacting …

Infografik: Dampak Covid-19 Terhadap Pendidikan, Zoe Kaskamanidis

Teacher Southeast Asia

Lembaga survei yang merespon terjadinya disrupsi dalam pendidikan atau Responses to Educational Disruption Survey (REDS) UNESCO/IEA menyelidiki apa saja dampak yang dibawa pandemi terhadap pendidikan di tingkat sekolah menengah, menginvestigasi bagaimana 11 negara mengatasi berbagai tantangan untuk memastikan keberlangsungan proses belajar mengajar dengan disrupsi yang ada. Cari tahu lebih lanjut temuan menarik dari survei tersebut di infografik kali ini.

Water Conservation: Extension Agents’ Perceptions Of Issue Importance, Professional Abilities, And Landowner Needs, Audrey Mccrary, Leslie M. Burger, Laura Downey, Beth H. Baker

The Journal of Extension

The Extension Service is one of many agencies charged with increasing awareness and knowledge of research-based agricultural conservation practices. A regional survey of Extension agents with agriculture and natural resources responsibilities was conducted to assess the need for in-service training on 11 water resource conservation topics. The highest priority training needs were for topics related to complex interactions and drivers of agricultural water pollution. This article highlights the implications of these results and offers broader perspective on bringing the Borich model of needs assessment into the agricultural and natural resources realm of subject matter expertise.

Infographic: The Impact Of Covid-19 On Education – Unesco Reds, Zoe Kaskamanidis

Teacher infographics

The Responses to Educational Disruption Survey (REDS) explores how the pandemic has impacted lower secondary education, investigating how 11 countries approached the challenge of ensuring continuity in teaching and learning during the disruption. Find out more about insights from the survey in today's infographic.

The Recovery Coach: An Intentional, Relational Interventionist As A Response To The Covid-19 Incomplete Grade Trend, Melanie A. Turrano

Education Doctorate Dissertations

The COVID-19 pandemic exposed many crises in education; fair and just grading was but one. During that tumultuous time, colleges improvised and created many “hold harmless” grading policies to provide empathy and understanding to students as well as to retain students otherwise negatively impacted by the inequities in their personal lives as well as the socioeconomic digital divide. One “due no harm” policy enacted at the community college where this study occurred was the encouragement of Incomplete (I) grades that prevented student failure in the short term, but traditionally results in long-term failure when the grade of Incomplete (I) converts …

Blinded By Whiteness: Middle-Class White Teachers’ Explorations Of Identity And Deficit Discourse At The Intersection Of Race, Class, And Perceived Ability, Tracy Driehaus

Education Doctorate Dissertations

A legacy of placing children of color and poverty at the center of the “problem” of race and class in education has left us in a holding pattern marked by a prevailing deficit discourse and problematizing of students. Scholars agree that the predominantly white, middle class, female teaching force who occupy US public school classrooms embody and perpetuate these inequitable educational practices endemic within this system. In this study, a small population of White, middle class teachers--including the researcher--organized within a Professional Learning Community (PLC) explored identity and deficit discourse at the intersection of race, class, and perceived ability. Grounded …

Secondary School El Teachers’ Classroom Language Proficiency: A Case Study In Bangladesh, Md. Abdur Rouf, Abdul Rashid Mohamed

The Qualitative Report

The study reported here aimed to examine the classroom language proficiency (CLP) of secondary school (SS) English language (EL) teachers in Bangladesh. It is obvious that the EL teachers in a non-native English-speaking context like Bangladesh need to have a very good oral proficiency in the target language (TL) as part of their content knowledge so that learners can take them as models and classroom teaching-learning is effective. Following a multiple case study approach, data were collected from six SS EL teachers as primary informants and four head teachers (HTs), three teacher trainers (TTs), and one curriculum expert (CE) as …