Digital Commons Network^™

Action Research As Professional Development: A Study Of Two Teachers, Wade R. Glathar

Theses and Dissertations

This study examines the experiences of two teachers in a public charter school who implement action research in their classrooms. The study explored the key elements of professional development as well as action research and makes the case as to why action research is an effective tool for teacher development. Participants were selected based on having little teaching experience and familiarity with action research. The study examined the experiences of teachers who have had limited professional development as they use action research in their practices. Data for the study were drawn from interviews as well as researcher and participant journals.

Life On The Campaign Trail: The Political Anthropology Of Local Politics, E.J Ford

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This document is an ethnographic account of one researcher's experience during an election season spent with one candidate. The document considers the history of political anthropology as a subfield of anthropology, the deployment of ideology and hegemony as theoretical concepts, and includes a brief history of Tampa and Hillsborough County politics. The document attempts to make connections between the practical necessities of campaigning, with reference to the processual approach of examining micro-political process, and theoretical issues related to the subject of political anthropology, notably the concepts of ideology, hegemony, and the subject of elites in human social organization.

It's All About The Teachers: Bank Street's Math For Teachers As Professional Development, Robin Hummel

Graduate Student Independent Studies

This work describes a professional development initiative that was based on the graduate course, Mathematics for Teachers in Diverse and Inclusive Educational Settings (K-6), taught by Linda Metnetsky at Bank Street College of Education. The author wrote and implemented this professional development initiative for teachers in her former district: a large, middle class, suburban school district outside of Philadelphia. It consisted of six full day sessions, held from October through April during the 2004-05 school year. Eleven teachers from third, fourth, and fifth grades participated, and the impact of this professional development on two participants is the focus of this …

Using Action Research Protocols To Structure The Development Of A Complex Exhibit At A Regional Children's Museum., John Cipora

Doctoral Dissertations 1896 - February 2014

No abstract provided.

Understanding Success In Community First Nation Education Through Anishinabe Meno-Bimaadziwin Action Research, Christy Rochelle Bressette

Digitized Theses

As involuntary minorities within their own ancestral lands, Canada’s First Nation people have experienced trauma within western-based education systems such as federal residential and day schools, public, and independent schools, which has resulted, in many cases, in social devastation and economic disparity. An indigenous and community approach to education and research promises to provide a solution to such intergenerational problems. This research provides compelling evidence that improvement to First Nation education is possible when initiated at the local community level. This is an important discovery as most non-native policies and initiatives designed to improve education for native people have failed. …

Creating A Sense Of Community In The Classroom Environment: An Investigation Into Collaborative Learning Among Grade 12 Students, Omadat Persaud

Digitized Theses

Although collaborative group-work has become an integral part of the learning process,

students often demonstrate and express their unwillingness to participate. This study utilized an action research design to explore the reasons for such responses by examining how a small group of grade 12 students experience collaborative learning. Participants established guidelines for the collaborative learning process, researched and constructed information on global issues, and negotiated possible solutions for such issues. They simultaneously volunteered their reflections through confidential interviews and a questionnaire on their experiences in collaborative learning throughout their schooling. While acknowledging the numerous benefits they had with collaborative learning, …

Creating A Sense Of Community In The Classroom Environment: An Investigation Into Collaborative Learning Among Grade 12 Students, Omadat Persaud

Digitized Theses

Although collaborative group-work has become an integral part of the learning process, students often demonstrate and express their unwillingness to participate. This study utilized an action research design to explore the reasons for such responses by examining how a small group of grade 12 students experience collaborative learning. Participants established guidelines for the collaborative learning process, researched and constructed information on global issues, and negotiated possible solutions for such issues. They simultaneously volunteered their reflections through confidential interviews and a questionnaire on their experiences in collaborative learning throughout their schooling. While acknowledging the numerous benefits they had with collaborative learning, …