Digital Commons Network^™

Using A Generalized Linear Mixed Model Approach To Explore The Role Of Age, Motor Proficiency, And Cognitive Styles In Children's Reach Estimation Accuracy, Priscila M. Cacola, Mohan Pant

Curriculum and Instruction Faculty Publications

The purpose was to use a multi-level statistical technique to analyze how children's age, motor proficiency, and cognitive styles interact to affect accuracy on reach estimation tasks via Motor Imagery and Visual Imagery. Results from the Generalized Linear Mixed Model analysis (GLMM) indicated that only the 7-year-old age group had significant random intercepts for both tasks. Motor proficiency predicted accuracy in reach tasks, and cognitive styles (object scale) predicted accuracy in the motor imagery task. GLMM analysis is suitable to explore age and other parameters of development. In this case, it allowed an assessment of motor proficiency interacting with age …

Implementing A Successful Collaborative Learning Environment, Andrea P. Beasley

Masters of Arts in Education Action Research Papers

This action research report summarizes a study of 65 diverse student learners in a 10^th grade AP US History class. This research investigates the implementation of a collaborative learning environment to elicit positive effects on student attitudes toward learning and their achievement. To gain pre-intervention data, students were surveyed on their attitudes and took multiple-choice assessments. During the intervention period, students completed surveys regarding the effectiveness of the collaborative learning implementation and completed multiple-choice assessments. After the interventions, students were surveyed again on their attitudes toward learning. The results demonstrated insignificant effects on student attitudes but improvements in student …

A Method For Simulating Burr Type Iii And Type Xii Distributions Through Moments And Correlations, Mohan Pant, Todd C. Headrick

Curriculum and Instruction Faculty Publications

This paper derives the Burr Type III and Type XII family of distributions in the contexts of univariate ??-moments and the ??- correlations. Included is the development of a procedure for specifying nonnormal distributions with controlled degrees of ??-skew, ??-kurtosis, and ??-correlations. The procedure can be applied in a variety of settings such as statistical modeling (e.g., forestry, fracture roughness, life testing, operational risk, etc.) and Monte Carlo or simulation studies. Numerical examples are provided to demonstrate that ??-moment-based Burr distributions are superior to their conventional moment-based analogs in terms of estimation and distribution fitting. Evaluation of the proposed procedure …

Literacy For All In 100 Days? A Research Based Strategy For Fast Progress In Low Income Countries, Helen Abadzi

Curriculum and Instruction Faculty Publications

In low-income countries many students are marginalized very early and remain illiterate. In grades 1-3 they attend rarely, though they may officially drop out in grade 4. Many others graduate from primary school without having learned letter values. The worrisome outcomes, despite much donor investment in low-income countries, have prompted scrutiny of the methods, and textbooks used to make students literate. This document offers insights from cognitive neuroscience and evidence suggesting that students can be taught basic literacy within the first semester of grade 1, if taught in consistently spelled languages. Teaching students at risk of dropout to read as …

Visual And Linguistic Factors In Literacy Acquisition: Instructional Implication For Beginning Readers In Low Income Countries, Helen Abadzi, C Marinelli, M Martelli, P. Praphamontripong, P Zoccolotti

Curriculum and Instruction Faculty Publications

Improving the quality of literacy teaching may require intervening at different levels, for example, encouraging school attendance and optimizing textbook format and teaching methods. Reading is a complex task involving perceptual, motor, linguistic, phonological, and memory components, each of which has a crucial role in determining reading rate. High poverty rates continue to have a negative impact on human resource development and education quality in Africa, further complicating the ability of most countries to reach the Education for All (EFA) and Millennium Development Goals (MDG). Moreover, Africa and Asia are hosts to most of the world's multilingual countries, in which …

Education For All In Low-Income Countries: A Crucial Role For Cognitive Scientists, Helen Abadzi

Curriculum and Instruction Faculty Publications

Donor funding has helped enroll in school most children of low-income countries. However, students get little schooling and few opportunities to encode and consolidate information. Many fail to learn and automatize the small units needed for more complex skills, such as reading. As a result, many children remain illiterate and drop out in the early primary grades. However, donors and governments often focus on the socioeconomic difficulties of the very poor and have limited insights on how to teach students who get no academic preparation before grade 1. Furthermore, staff experiences with middle class schools may promote complex instructional methods …

Illuminating The Effects Of Dynamic Lighting On Student Learning, Michael S. Mott, Daniel H. Robinson, Ashley Walden, Jodie Burnette, Angela S. Rutherford

Curriculum and Instruction Faculty Publications

Light is universally understood as essential to the human condition. Yet light quality varies substantially in nature and in controlled environments leading to questions of which artificial light characteristics facilitate maximum learning. Recent research has examined lighting variables of color temperature, and illumination for affecting sleep, mood, focus, motivation, concentration, and work and school performance. This has resulted in artificial light systems intended to support human beings in their actualization through dynamic lighting technology allowing for different lighting conditions per task. A total of 84 third graders were exposed to either focus (6000K-100fc average maintained) or normal lighting. Focus lighting …

Around The World With Geospatial Technologies, Andrew J. Milson, Joseph J. Kerski

Curriculum and Instruction Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Can Adults Become Fluent In Newly Learned Scripts?, Helen Abadzi

Curriculum and Instruction Faculty Publications

Adults learning new scripts have difficulty becoming automatic readers. They typically read haltingly, understand little of what they read, and may forget letter values. This article presents the hypothesis that halting reading among adult neoliterates is due to low-level perceptual functions in the brain that have a sensitive period. These may be related to feature integration; whether illiterate or educated, adults learning a new script may be perceiving letters as connected segments rather than unbreakable units. The time needed to resolve ambiguities and determine how the segments are combined may delay identification and result in letter-by-letter reading. This phenomenon could …

How To Speed Up Arabic Literacy For Lower-Income Students? Some Insights From Cognitive Neuroscience., Helen Abadzi

Curriculum and Instruction Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Visualizing Economic Development With Arcgis Explorer, Andrew J. Milson, Megan L. Webster

Curriculum and Instruction Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Sig En La Nube: Websig Para La Enseñanza De La Geografía, Andrew J. Milson

Curriculum and Instruction Faculty Publications

There is no doubt among most geography educators that GIS is an important tool for teaching and learning, but its use has been slowed by issues such as the cost of the software and the management of large spatial data files. The move to cloud computing is one trend that is promising for GIS in education. The "cloud" refers to a virtual network that provides many users with access to files, services, and applications. In this article I argue that cloud computing and WebGIS have the potential to transform geography education. I will describe three case studies that make use …

Reading Fluency Measurements In Efa Fti Partner Countries : Outcomes And Improvement Prospects, Helen Abadzi

Curriculum and Instruction Faculty Publications

Students in lower-income countries often acquire limited literacy in school and often drop out illiterate. For those who stay, the problem is not detected until it is too late to intervene. Oral reading fluency tests given in the early grades can quickly and inexpensively assess student literacy. For this reason, one-minute reading studies have been popular. A search carried out in early 2010 showed that over 50 fluency studies have been conducted in various countries, and that norms have been established in the U.S., Mexico, and Chile. The studies often reported data in ways that were not easily comparable, and …

The Not-So-Quiet Revolution: Cautionary Comments On The Rejection Of Hypothesis Testing In Favor Of A “Causal” Modeling Alternative, Daniel H. Robinson, Joel R. Levin

Curriculum and Instruction Faculty Publications

Rodgers (2010) recently applauded a revolution involving the increased use of statistical modeling techniques. It is argued that such use may have a downside, citing empirical evidence in educational psychology that modeling techniques are often applied in cross-sectional, correlational studies to produce unjustified causal conclusions and prescriptive statements.

Research In Technology Education, Philip A. Reed (Editor), James E. Laporte (Editor)

STEMPS Faculty Books

Due to the laboratory-based nature of technology and engineering education programs, professionals in our field have often focused on the resources in our classrooms and laboratories and the instructional methodologies used to address specific concepts. Formal research into content and practice has often given way to “what seems right”. New curriculum is constantly being introduced (based on what is occurring in business and industry), yet the inclusion for those evolving concepts in courses and programs is typically not verified.

Hence, the importance of the 2010 CTTE yearbook and its focus on the dire need for an aggressive research agenda in …

On The Roles Of External Knowledge Representations In Assessment Design, Robert J. Mislevy, John T. Behrens, Randy E. Bennett, Sarah F. Demark, Dennis C. Frezzo, Roy Levy, Daniel H. Robinson, Daisy Wise Rutstein, Valerie J. Shute, Ken Stanley, Fielding I. Winters

Curriculum and Instruction Faculty Publications

People use external knowledge representations (KRs) to create, identify, depict, transform, store, share, and archive information. Learning to work with KRs is central to becoming proficient in virtually every discipline. As such, KRs play central roles in curriculum, instruction, and assessment. We describe five key roles of KRs in assessment: 1. An assessment is itself a KR, which makes explicit the knowledge that is valued, ways it is used, and standards of good work. 2. The analysis of any domain in which learning is to be assessed must include the identification and analysis of the KRs in that domain. 3. …

Success Factors And Strategic Planning: Rebuilding An Academic Library Digitization Program, Cory K. Lampert, Jason Vaughan

Library Faculty Publications

This paper discusses a dual approach of case study and research survey to investigate the complex factors in sustaining academic library digitization programs. The case study involves the background of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) Libraries’ digitization program and elaborates on the authors’ efforts to gain staff support for this program. A related survey was administered to all Association of Research Libraries (ARL) members, seeking to collect baseline data on their digital collections, understand their respective administrative frameworks, and to gather feedback on both negative obstacles and positive inputs affecting their success. Results from the survey, combined with …

Instructional Time Loss In Developing Countries : Concepts, Measurement, And Implications, Helen Abadzi

Curriculum and Instruction Faculty Publications

Students in developing countries are often taught for only a fraction of the intended number of school hours. Time is often wasted due to informal school closures, teacher absenteeism, delays, early departures, and poor use of classroom time. Since the 1970s, attempts have been made in several countries to measure the use of instructional time in schools and its impact on student achievement. Studies have been of variable quality and have used different definitions and methods. However, they have consistently shown that significant amounts of time are lost and that the amount of time spent engaged in learning tasks is …

Teaching The Teacher: How To Integrate Information Literayc Into The Curriculum, Robert Fernekes, Sonya S. Shepherd

Georgia International Conference on Information Literacy

See presentation description.

Gis In K-12 Education: Pedagogical Tool Or Weapon Of Mass Distraction?, Andrew J. Milson

Curriculum and Instruction Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Research Supporting Technology Education- Task Force 2.4 Final Report, Philip A. Reed, Jim Carlson, Fred Figliano, Hal Harrison, Hyuksoo Kwon, Johnny Moye, Phyllis Opare, John M. Ritz, Roger Skophammer, John Wells

STEMPS Faculty Publications

(First paragraph) ITEA's Board of Directors convened a task force in 2006 to identify research on technology teaching and learning. The resulting database is designed to help teachers, supervisors, and anyone that needs to show research support for technology education. The research was compiled by the following task force members:

Estandares De Tecnologia Geoespacial En Los Planes De Estudios Estatales En Los Estados Unidos, Andrew J. Milson

Curriculum and Instruction Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Absenteeism And Beyond: Instructional Time Loss And Consequences, Helen Abadzi

Curriculum and Instruction Faculty Publications

Studies have shown that learning outcomes are related to the amount of time students engage in learning tasks. However, visits to schools have revealed that students are often taught for only a fraction of the intended time, particularly in lower-income countries. Losses are due to informal school closures, teacher absenteeism, delays, early departures, and sub-optimal use of time in the classroom. A study was undertaken to develop an efficient methodology for measuring instructional time loss. Thus, instructional time use was measured in sampled schools in Tunisia, Morocco, Ghana, and the Brazilian state of Pernambuco. The percentage of time that students …

The Return Of The Native? :Questions About Geographical Knowledge And Spatial Thinking, Andrew J. Milson

Curriculum and Instruction Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Discovering Africa Through Internet-Based Geographic Information Systems: A Pan-African Summit Simulation, Andrew J. Milson, Kathleen M. Gilbert, Brian D. Earle

Curriculum and Instruction Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Efficient Learning For The Poor : Insights From The Frontier Of Cognitive Neuroscience, Helen Abadzi

Curriculum and Instruction Faculty Publications

This book integrates research into applications that extend from preschool brain development to the memory of adult educators. In layman's terms, it provides explanations and answers to questions such as: Why do children have to read fast before they can understand what they read? How do health, nutrition, and stimulation influence brain development? Why should students learn basic skills in their maternal language? Is there such a thing as an untrained teacher? What signs in a classroom show whether students are getting a quality education? How must information be presented in class so that students can retain it and use …

Geography In An Interdisciplinary Environment: Developing Research Paths, David J. Rutherford, Andrew J. Milson, Osa Brand, Amber N. Conrad, Ed Grode, Zachary A. Moore, Catherine Springer, Julie A. Tuason, Jamie Zech

Curriculum and Instruction Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Strategies And Policies For Literacy, Helen Abadzi

Curriculum and Instruction Faculty Publications

Despite the existence of about one billion illiterates in the world, adult literacy programs make up 1–5 percent of government or donor budgets, and they remain severely underfunded in comparison to primary education. They have had a long and disappointing history of high dropout and low achievement. Overall, many of the 1970s campaigns had efficiency rates of about 12.5 percent, with few participants acquiring stable literacy skills. The 1990s brought new strategies that included empowering NGOs and focusing on existing groups and on management improvement for governments and cooperating organizations. The numbers of participants increased, while dropout and course completion …

The Trouble With Interpreting Statistically Nonsignificant Effect Sizes In Single-Study Investigations, Joel R. Levin, Daniel H. Robinson

Curriculum and Instruction Faculty Publications

In this commentary, we offer a perspective on the problem of authors reporting and interpreting effect sizes in the absence of formal statistical tests of their chanceness. The perspective reinforces our previous distinction between single -study investigations and multiple-study syntheses.

Latin America Online: Internet Resources And Web-Based Lessons, Andrew J. Milson

Curriculum and Instruction Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.