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Three Learning Contexts As Paths To Preservice Instrumental Music Teachers' Score Analysis, Rehearsal Planning, And Instructional Readiness: An Exploratory Study In Professional Development, Jennifer Lee Pulling Aug 2021

Three Learning Contexts As Paths To Preservice Instrumental Music Teachers' Score Analysis, Rehearsal Planning, And Instructional Readiness: An Exploratory Study In Professional Development, Jennifer Lee Pulling

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Despite an abundance of evidence-based research pointing to the effectiveness of long-term teacher professional development (PD) (Darling-Hammond, Hyler & Gardner, 2017; Desimone, 2009), instrumental music teachers who seek to improve their teaching practices are limited to and often prefer short-term PD opportunities (Bauer, 2007; West, 2020). In recent years, a growing knowledge base focused on music teacher PD has given attention to long-term, content-based and collaborative music PD (Conway, 2015; Kastner, 2014; Stanley, Snell & Edgar, 2014) while a dearth of evidence-based research exists on short-term music PD (Bauer, 2007; West, 2020). The purpose of this collective case study was …


To Be Read: The Educational Opportunities Of Booktube, Anita M. Dubroc Jul 2021

To Be Read: The Educational Opportunities Of Booktube, Anita M. Dubroc

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

BookTube, a literary-focused subcommunity of YouTube, is a network of readers where educational theory and literary theory collide. BookTube is known for delving out book reviews and showing off book hauls, but its content creators, known as booktubers, do much more than display walls of colorful hardback books. The BookTube community is a networked knowledge community (Sorensen & Mara, 2014) in which informal knowledge is valued as much as the formal knowledge attained in classrooms. Online book reviews on sites such as Amazon and Goodreads have demonstrated the waning influence of professional book reviewers because now any reader take on …


Thoreau's Melancholia, Walden's Friendship, And Queer Agency, Julia Morgan Leslie Jan 2017

Thoreau's Melancholia, Walden's Friendship, And Queer Agency, Julia Morgan Leslie

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Walden queers its readers. While many have investigated Thoreau’s queerness, there has been little notice of Walden’s queerness. This project begins with a situational analysis that identifies the melancholic antecedents of Walden in Thoreau’s life and his choices that led to the illumination of his melancholia. Thoreau had already been experimenting with what Branka Arsić identified as “literalization.” Nevertheless, a period of crisis, detailed by Robert Milder, made him aware of what Nicolas Abraham and Maria Torok have referred to as the melancholic’s blind skill of “demetaphorization.” I suggest that Thoreau exploited this skill to produce Walden’s unique …


An Evaluation Of The Utility Of Reading Curriculum-Based Measurement As Progress Monitoring Tools And Predictors Of Comprehension, Haley Elizabeth York Jan 2016

An Evaluation Of The Utility Of Reading Curriculum-Based Measurement As Progress Monitoring Tools And Predictors Of Comprehension, Haley Elizabeth York

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Many American students struggle with reading, particularly in the area of comprehension. As such, early identification of reading difficulties, use of evidenced-based interventions, and monitoring of student reading progress over time is essential. Curriculum-based measurement (CBM) is a technically adequate, efficient tool whose features and design make it a good candidate for early identification and progress monitoring purposes, especially within a response to intervention framework. However, there is still some uncertainty regarding the utility of reading CBM as progress monitoring tools. Specifically, the literature has suggested that variability in the difficulty of CBM materials may influence how well these tools …


Evaluating Teaching Efficiency In Reading And Spelling Instruction, Sarah Joanne Miller Jan 2014

Evaluating Teaching Efficiency In Reading And Spelling Instruction, Sarah Joanne Miller

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Reading and spelling are essential skills for a student’s educational success. The current literature on spelling instruction has examined a variety of spelling modalities, but has never directly compared written versus oral spelling. There are theoretical and empirical indications that either method may be superior to the other. Thus, study one directly compared written and oral spelling instruction for their rates of spelling acquisition as well as generalization to reading. The results of study 1 indicated that written spelling was superior to oral spelling in rates of acquisition of both spelling and reading accuracy. Previous research has also indicated that …


Exploring The Impact Of The Common Core State Standards Implementation Through The Eyes Of Teachers', Parents', And Administrators' Beliefs And Attitudes Related To Reading Instruction, Sheryl Coglaiti Jan 2014

Exploring The Impact Of The Common Core State Standards Implementation Through The Eyes Of Teachers', Parents', And Administrators' Beliefs And Attitudes Related To Reading Instruction, Sheryl Coglaiti

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Belief(s) and attitude(s) about education, moreover reading, can shape the way in which we respond to pressures to initiate instructional changes in schools and society. Recently, an enormous reform effort, known as the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) is underway in the nation. The implementation plays a critical role in how the CCSS will be received. In light of being received, how will they impact teachers’, parents’, and administrators’ belief(s) and/or attitude(s) related to reading? According to research, there is a need to consider teachers’, parents’, and administrators’ belief(s) and/or attitude(s) about reading, which may play a role in the …


Exploring The Implementation Of Reading Common Core State Standards In An Elementary School Setting, Lacy Alane Davis Jan 2014

Exploring The Implementation Of Reading Common Core State Standards In An Elementary School Setting, Lacy Alane Davis

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This study explored the implementation process of five teachers and two administrators of the Common Core State Standards in Reading. This ethnographic case study investigates one groups’ attitudes and instructional practices. The researcher focused on three questions in order to provide an in-depth analysis of the data collected. These questions include: How do educators implement and develop reading curriculum from the Common Core State Standards? How does the mandated requirements of the CCSS impact the attitudes of reading teachers? How do primary grade teachers approach the CCSS in comparison to upper elementary teachers? The study followed an ethnographic analysis method …


Addressing The Higher Level Language Skills For The Common Core State Standards In Kindergarten, Ashley Bourque Meaux Jan 2013

Addressing The Higher Level Language Skills For The Common Core State Standards In Kindergarten, Ashley Bourque Meaux

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Kindergarten is a critical year, providing a foundation for children’s success in school. With a common set of standards, the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), finalized and made available to states for adoption critical skills in numeracy and literacy will be uniformed from kindergarten through high school. Some children enter school with a sufficient foundation to support success in kindergarten and subsequent years. However, some children either because of lack of exposure during preschool years (e.g., Aikens & Barbarin, 2008; Hart & Risley, 1995; Schacter, 1979; Snow, Burns & Griffin, 1998) or because of language delays associated with developmental disabilities …


The Influence Of Selected Demographic Characteristics On The Reading Ability Of Fourth Grade Students In Louisiana, Johnny W. Morgan Jan 2011

The Influence Of Selected Demographic Characteristics On The Reading Ability Of Fourth Grade Students In Louisiana, Johnny W. Morgan

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The primary purpose of this study was to determine the influence of selected demographic characteristics on the reading ability of fourth grade students in Louisiana. The dependent variable for this study was reading ability of fourth grade students. Independent variables were demographic characteristics as measured by reading achievement (overall reading score and subscale reading score on the LEAP assessment). The Louisiana Educational Assessment Program (LEAP) exam is a high-stakes test that is administered to fourth grade students in Louisiana. Students must pass specific portions of the test to be promoted to fifth grade. Academic achievement data on the LEAP test …


Investigation Of A Classroom-Based Reading Intervention Strategy For Older Elementary Students With Poor Decoding Skills, Shara Brinkley Jan 2010

Investigation Of A Classroom-Based Reading Intervention Strategy For Older Elementary Students With Poor Decoding Skills, Shara Brinkley

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Using a response to intervention framework, this study investigates the efficacy of a classroom-based intervention for struggling readers with decoding deficits in the upper elementary grades. Twenty two students in the fourth and sixth grades from four classrooms in low-performing schools received either a short 20-minute intervention delivered by their teacher or access to the lessons for an equivalent amount of time but no teacher instruction. Using three orthographic patterns, the 24 lessons consisted of a series of ten minimally contrasted words differing by one letter. The students in the experimental group decoded the words using a visual alphabet (Phonic …


Predicting Performance On High Stakes Testing: Validity And Accuracy Of Curriculum-Based Measurement Of Reading And Writing, Marie Young Henderson Jan 2009

Predicting Performance On High Stakes Testing: Validity And Accuracy Of Curriculum-Based Measurement Of Reading And Writing, Marie Young Henderson

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of the current investigation was to determine which curriculum-based measures of written expression demonstrated adequate technical characteristics and provided useful information towards predicting performance on a state-standardized assessment. Data collected from 124 third grade students was used for the study. Curriculum-based measures of reading and writing collected three times within the school year were utilized as the independent variables for predicting the dependent variables. Writing samples were scored using 9 indices of writing. Results from a state standardized assessment (iLEAP) were used as the dependent variables. The study found reliability coefficients for writing indices to be consistent with …


Phonemic Awareness And Sight Word Reading In Toddlers, Alicia Tonya Mcinnis Jan 2008

Phonemic Awareness And Sight Word Reading In Toddlers, Alicia Tonya Mcinnis

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This study investigated emerging phonemic awareness skills and printed sight word recognition abilities in two-year-old toddlers using plain text and MorphoPhonic Face words on flash cards. MorphoPhonic Face words were used to determine if this learning process is enhanced when words are iconically represented to show the first sound and the word's meaning (purposefully creating idiosyncratic cues) using pictures superimposed into the letters. Sixteen (16) age-matched toddlers were assigned to alternate treatment groups and received exposure to both printed and MorphoPhonic pictured words three times weekly for six weeks. During each session, children were taught 16 sight words (8 in …


The Great Reading Project (Gifted Readers Enhance Academic Talent): A Gifted-On-Gifted, Cross-Age Tutoring And Mentoring Intervention, Douglas Scott Samson Jan 2008

The Great Reading Project (Gifted Readers Enhance Academic Talent): A Gifted-On-Gifted, Cross-Age Tutoring And Mentoring Intervention, Douglas Scott Samson

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The GREAT (Gifted Readers Enhance Academic Talent) Reading Project is a quasi-experimental, between-group study that evaluated a 13-week before-school student tutoring/mentoring reading and literacy program. The study examined the effects of the intervention on reading achievement for each group involved, including high-ability gifted fifth grade mentors, high-ability gifted first grade protégés, and above-average first grade “Scholastic Academy” protégés. Its primary goal was to improve academic achievement for above-average students in order to help them formally qualify for gifted services. The secondary goal was to promote and assess academic growth for high-ability students already in the gifted program. Mentor/protégé pairs met …


A Study Examining The Impact Of Scaffolding Young Children's Acquisition Of Literacy In Primary Grades, Judith Rollins Burch Jan 2007

A Study Examining The Impact Of Scaffolding Young Children's Acquisition Of Literacy In Primary Grades, Judith Rollins Burch

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This case study explores the implementation of scaffolding in literacy learning in a first grade classroom setting. The complexities and nuisances of scaffolding present in the elementary school classroom context during reading and writing instruction are examined. Ten first graders, five from a pilot study an five from the case study, are followed in reading and writing in a public school classroom. Themes indicate that students in lower elementary grades benefit from reading and writing instruction that include the following strategic elements: 1) leveled predictable texts; 2) small group guided reading and writing instruction; 3) systematic, strategic instruction based upon …


Alphabetic And Phonemic Awareness In Toddlers, Pamela A. Terrell Jan 2007

Alphabetic And Phonemic Awareness In Toddlers, Pamela A. Terrell

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The ability of 20-24 month-old toddlers to recognize graphemes and phonemes was investigated by reading a Phonic Faces (PF) alphabet picture book. Phonic Faces iconically picture a letter in the mouth of a character producing the sound (the curve of the P looks like the top lip popping the /p/ sound). The book was composed of nine letters and was read individually to experimental subjects three times weekly for six weeks. The control group received no treatment, but engaged in individual play activities for comparable time. Following six-weeks the groups alternated so the former control group now received the alphabet …


An Exploration Of The Impact Of Picture Book Illustrations On The Comprehension Skills And Vocabulary Development Of Emergent Readers, Judy Lavender Nicholas Jan 2007

An Exploration Of The Impact Of Picture Book Illustrations On The Comprehension Skills And Vocabulary Development Of Emergent Readers, Judy Lavender Nicholas

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The formal instruction process of teaching reading to emergent and beginning readers needs to incorporate a much more multimodal approach. People today, not only in America but in many other countries as well, are more graphically oriented than any other generation has ever been. Children in our society expect to experience pictures and images in almost everything they encounter. This graphic orientation needs to be taken advantage of and incorporated into the educational process in ways that can be beneficial to the learning environments of children in our schools. Reading programs need to forego one-dimensional teaching methods and learn how …


Characteristics Of An Effective Teacher Of Reading In An Elementary School Setting, Jennifer Aby Archer Jan 2004

Characteristics Of An Effective Teacher Of Reading In An Elementary School Setting, Jennifer Aby Archer

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Struggling readers have been the central focus of American politics for decades. Teachers of all ages and experiences across America deliver reading instruction in a variety of ways. The purpose of this study is to determine the characteristics of an effective teacher of reading in an elementary classroom setting. The study was conducted in a public and a private sector school in a capital city in the southern United States. Two principals, two second grade teachers, and two fourth grade teachers were participants in this study. A qualitative research focus provided the methodological basis for this study. The research design …


Effective Literacy Instruction In The Elementary Grades, Marie Laurent Bergeron Jan 2004

Effective Literacy Instruction In The Elementary Grades, Marie Laurent Bergeron

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to identify elements present in effective literacy instruction, i.e., those elements that fostered reading, speaking, listening, thinking, writing, and metacognitive skills. By examining variables that promoted literacy acquisition and achievement, a detailed account resulted which described classroom practice as related to teacher beliefs, strategies, materials, and classroom climate. The primary method of qualitative analysis used for this study was the Developmental Research Sequence (DRS) Method (Spradley, 1980). Two classrooms with exemplary teachers were studied extensively. Data collection involved the use of primary sources (interviews, observations, and student and teacher work) and secondary sources (records, …


Literacy As A Performing Art: A Phenomenological Study Of Oral Dramatic Reading, Neva Virginia Cramer Jan 2003

Literacy As A Performing Art: A Phenomenological Study Of Oral Dramatic Reading, Neva Virginia Cramer

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Based on semiotic, aesthetic response, reader response, and drama in education theories, this phenomenological study seeks to describe the literary experience of text through oral interpretation for middle to high SES, fourth and eighth grade students as compared to Low SES fourth and eighth grade students. Using the research methodology of Moustakas (1994) and data analysis of Teddlie (2000), this study proposes to describe and understand the relation of literary understanding and oral dramatic expression implicit in the descriptive paralinguistic and chronemic patternizations of the oral rendition of text and describe the act of reading as phenomenology. Descriptions of the …