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Amy Leh Tssa Summer 2006, Amy Leh Sep 2006

Amy Leh Tssa Summer 2006, Amy Leh

Teaching Skills Study Awards (TSSA) Reports

Enhances faculty's teaching by attending a conference devoted to university teaching, a high-impact practice, evidence-based practice or a newly developing teaching practice.


Timothy Pytell Cd Summer 2006, Timothy Pytell Jun 2006

Timothy Pytell Cd Summer 2006, Timothy Pytell

Innovative Course Redesign Grant Reports

Supports faculty to redesign or develop a course in ways that implement high-impact, evidence-based, and/or innovative teaching strategies to improve student learning.


Sungkyoo Huh Cd Summer 2005, Sungkyoo Huh Jun 2006

Sungkyoo Huh Cd Summer 2005, Sungkyoo Huh

Innovative Course Redesign Grant Reports

Supports faculty to redesign or develop a course in ways that implement high-impact, evidence-based, and/or innovative teaching strategies to improve student learning.


Technological Literacy – Not Just You And Your Computer, Joseph Scarcella, Susan Daniels May 2006

Technological Literacy – Not Just You And Your Computer, Joseph Scarcella, Susan Daniels

Journal of Critical Issues in Educational Practice

One might argue that the word technology is one of the most misunderstood and misused terms in common usage today. Many believe technology to be synonymous with computers, the internet and other high-tech media. This is limited and short sighted view indeed! Technology encompasses both simple and complex artifacts used daily. Pencils, toothbrushes, zippers and toothpicks – not to mention Velcro (!) – for instance, are all examples of what might be considered relatively modern examples of technology. Often, the wonder of “everyday” invention is lost in our current notions of technology. Yet, it is an investigative inquiry into the …


Five Approaches To Literacy In Correctional Education, Thom Gehring, Gary H. Sherwin May 2006

Five Approaches To Literacy In Correctional Education, Thom Gehring, Gary H. Sherwin

Journal of Critical Issues in Educational Practice

This article introduces literacy from a few “big picture” perspectives, and then reviews five paradigms that have shaped the teaching and learning of literacy in residential confinement institutions for juveniles and adults. The paradigms are specific to correctional education, but they will be familiar to all alternative teachers and advocates of literacy instruction.


University Diversity Committee: Where Diversity And Dedication Meet, Mary Texeira May 2006

University Diversity Committee: Where Diversity And Dedication Meet, Mary Texeira

Journal of Critical Issues in Educational Practice

No abstract provided.


The Power Of Visuals: Picture Books As Invitations To Literacy, Mary Jo Skillings May 2006

The Power Of Visuals: Picture Books As Invitations To Literacy, Mary Jo Skillings

Journal of Critical Issues in Educational Practice

When young children are exposed to picture books, they are building important bridges to literacy. Picture books are sometimes defined as a storybook with a dual narrative. That is, the illustrations and text work interdependently, the integration of the visual and the verbal tell the story. The illustrations add a new dimension that extends beyond the words on the page; together, the text and pictures make the story stronger. A well crafted picture book is a feast for the eyes of a young child. The illustrations awaken and develop the child’s visual, mental, and verbal imagination.


In Our Own Backyard: Critical Theory And The Development Of The San Jacinto Center For Environmental Education, Susanna Hamilton, Darleen Stoner, Randall Wright May 2006

In Our Own Backyard: Critical Theory And The Development Of The San Jacinto Center For Environmental Education, Susanna Hamilton, Darleen Stoner, Randall Wright

Journal of Critical Issues in Educational Practice

This research addresses the topic of nature centers from a critical theory perspective. This research assumed in part, the question: what are the characteristics of a functional and successful nature center that includes environmental education goals and programs? Nature center administrators from across the United States were surveyed and asked to share their opinions on this topic. Six overall characteristics pertaining to management and vision were identified through an exploratory mixed‑method design. Other components of these characteristics were discovered during the analysis of the data, and include factors such as approaches to education. Recommendations for improving nature centers and their …


Aesthetic Knowing: Essential To The Development Of Heart And Mind., Laura Howzell-Young, Susan Daniels May 2006

Aesthetic Knowing: Essential To The Development Of Heart And Mind., Laura Howzell-Young, Susan Daniels

Journal of Critical Issues in Educational Practice

Children are biologically wired to experience their world through rich sensory, affective, aesthetic, and imaginal experiences. Children thirst for art, music and movement, and these modes are utilized widely to learn the varied languages of literacy: the alphabet, numbers, vocabulary, body-sense and more. Yet, in response to meeting higher and more prescribed standards at the elementary and secondary levels, there is a tendency to narrow the curriculum, to consider art and music expendable, to view social-emotional development as external to the schoolhouse. This narrowing is happening just as our global culture is moving again toward multiple kinds of communication: toward …


From Critical Theory To Action Research Or Why This Feels Empowering, Randall Wright, Carolyn Marquez May 2006

From Critical Theory To Action Research Or Why This Feels Empowering, Randall Wright, Carolyn Marquez

Journal of Critical Issues in Educational Practice

This essay reflects the attempts of the first author of this paper to teach the sociological foundations of education from a critical theory perspective and discusses a surprising outcome—some students feel disempowered by the approach. It suggests that action research offers teachers the opportunity to consider their roles as social agents. One teacher’s story is shared to illustrate how her local efforts play a significant role in transforming the classroom into a more inviting, less alienating locale—addressing the “homelessness” that characterizes the modern school. Her story illustrates how action research, grounded as it is in specific, local concerns and personalities, …


The Case For Reflective Practice In Alternative And Correctional Education, Thom Gehring, Randall Wright May 2006

The Case For Reflective Practice In Alternative And Correctional Education, Thom Gehring, Randall Wright

Journal of Critical Issues in Educational Practice

Most alternative and correctional educators have not had systematic access to relevant knowledge of their field, its history and literature, or parallel programs in other jurisdictions. As a result, they tend to accept whatever strategies happen to be current at their site. This problem is associated with the lack of teacher education programs specific to the field of alternative and correctional education. The purpose of this article is to prompt reflection regarding key principles of teaching, learning, and education service delivery structures. Axiomatic application of any principles can lead to misconceptions that reflective practice can help correct. The theme of …


Where Visual Literacy And Identity Meet: Adolescents Define Themselves Through Participation In A University Video And Art Enrichment Program, Susan Daniels, Patricia Little, Linda M. Reynolds, Alayne Sullivan May 2006

Where Visual Literacy And Identity Meet: Adolescents Define Themselves Through Participation In A University Video And Art Enrichment Program, Susan Daniels, Patricia Little, Linda M. Reynolds, Alayne Sullivan

Journal of Critical Issues in Educational Practice

This article summarizes a project that oriented one hundred and twenty-five gifted and talented middle-school students to university culture through a series of summer workshops that emphasized visual media. Various workshops introduced students to methods of video and art production. The middle-school students created short videos and artistic collages to represent their identity in response to two activities: (a) in-depth explorations of the California State University campus at San Bernardino; and (b) literary reading. Art and video production are revealed as a powerful means of middle-school students’ identity formation and expression; the work summarized herein gains credence through its alignment …


Developing High School Multiple Intelligence Learning Centers: An Action Research Project In History., Jessica Cannaday May 2006

Developing High School Multiple Intelligence Learning Centers: An Action Research Project In History., Jessica Cannaday

Journal of Critical Issues in Educational Practice

Research that provides results which can be almost instantaneously put into use is looked on by some teachers as a path to better student learning. Accordingly, action research is a form of critical reflection that some experts believe can achieve instant change. Although, action research is sometimes denigrated as lacking in precision, the critical reflection necessary in any well done action research project demonstrates that such research while, not quantitatively rigorous can still be qualitatively useful. As such, the author discusses her own implementation of MI learning centers as a form of action research in the classroom.


Schism: When Research And Practice Fail To Meet, Camille M. Mayers, Donna L. Schnorr May 2006

Schism: When Research And Practice Fail To Meet, Camille M. Mayers, Donna L. Schnorr

Journal of Critical Issues in Educational Practice

The authors explore the hypothesis generation, intervention formation and operationalization of PL 107-110, as a cautionary example of the social cost of failure to effectively integrate empirical research to professional practice. They suggest a reexamination of traditional dichotomous University identification as "Research versus Practitioner" and present a case for a stronger emphasis upon the integration of research and practice through applied experiential activity during the period of University education.


Meaningful Assessment Promotes Meaningful Learning, Diane K. Brantley May 2006

Meaningful Assessment Promotes Meaningful Learning, Diane K. Brantley

Journal of Critical Issues in Educational Practice

Since the enactment of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act in 1965, America’s schools have faced enhanced scrutiny by the public sector. Larger demands have been placed on children to perform at increasingly higher levels of achievement in reading and math, often beginning as early as kindergarten. Teachers and institutions of higher education have also felt the surge of outside pressure to “perform” wash over them.


Amy Leh Tssa Winter 2006, Amy Leh Apr 2006

Amy Leh Tssa Winter 2006, Amy Leh

Teaching Skills Study Awards (TSSA) Reports

Enhances faculty's teaching by attending a conference devoted to university teaching, a high-impact practice, evidence-based practice or a newly developing teaching practice.


Educational Interpretive Programs For Ecotourism Destinations, Rachael Anne Hamilton Jan 2006

Educational Interpretive Programs For Ecotourism Destinations, Rachael Anne Hamilton

Theses Digitization Project

Five interpretive programs designed for use by educators, naturalists, or interpreters working at ecotourism destinations. Topics covered include environmentally responsible behavior, on-site recycling programs, renewable energy systems, and plant and animal species conservation.


Code Switching: ¿Y Qué?, Helen Zamarripa Jan 2006

Code Switching: ¿Y Qué?, Helen Zamarripa

Theses Digitization Project

The project examined the pros and cons regarding the use code of switching across social contexts both in oral and written language. It argues that code switching is a viable mediating tool for teaching students the values of their language(s), culture(s), and identity. The researcher uses Vygotsky's concept of the Zone of Proximal Development to show that children often use code switching as a means to accommodate gaps in their English language skills. Teachers who recognize this can assist students by using social interaction and language as a tool to bridge the level of actual performance and the learning potential …


Increasing Comprehension Strategies Through Reciprocal Teaching, Kathlyn Garcia Benosa Jan 2006

Increasing Comprehension Strategies Through Reciprocal Teaching, Kathlyn Garcia Benosa

Theses Digitization Project

The purpose of the study was twofold. First, it describes two research-based instructional strategies that have been effective in increasing reading comprehension (reciprocal teaching and using readers' response journals). Second, a quasi-experimental research design was created to determine the educational impact of these two strategies on the reading comprehension levels of elementary-aged English Language Learners (ELLs). The data was collected from a low socioeconomic elementary school, specifically looking at a second grade classroom. The classroom demographic included eighteen students, ten of which were English Language Learners. Both informal and formal assessments were used to determine growth across time. The overall …


Perceptions Of A Culturally Sensitive Hiv/Aids Curriculum, Yolanda Vivian Mouton Jan 2006

Perceptions Of A Culturally Sensitive Hiv/Aids Curriculum, Yolanda Vivian Mouton

Theses Digitization Project

The focus of the study was to explore to what degree culturally sensitive HIV/AIDS curriculum and materials were perceived as important by African-American students. Students selected for the research (N=121) were from a high school in San Bernardino, California, an area that represents a multiethnic population. Frequency descriptions and bivariate corrrelations were conducted to analyze the data. Trends found in this study indicated African-Americans did not perceive cultural sensitivity as an important aspect of HIV/AIDS education, and correlations between the Multigroup Ethnic Identity Measure (MEIM) score of African-Americans and their perceptions of the need for culturally sensitive HIV/AIDS education materials …


Innovative Literacy Content, Methods, And Assessment In English-As-A-Foreign Language Primary Instruction, Tzu-Ru Tsai Jan 2006

Innovative Literacy Content, Methods, And Assessment In English-As-A-Foreign Language Primary Instruction, Tzu-Ru Tsai

Theses Digitization Project

The primary goal of this project is to offer Taiwanese teachers diverse innovative literacy instruction and assessments to motivate students' reading processes. Sample curriculum/lesson plans are included.


Natural History Of Hesperoyucca Whipplei, Lizabeth Ann Hope-King Jan 2006

Natural History Of Hesperoyucca Whipplei, Lizabeth Ann Hope-King

Theses Digitization Project

Explores many aspects of the Hesperoyucca whipplei (formerly known as Yucca whipplei), a type of chaparral plant that grows in arid regions of Southern California. Five of the subspecies of H. whipplei are individually described and discussed. Its relationship with its pollinator, Tegeticula maculata, is traced and documented throughout the process of a reproductive season. The project examines the historic uses of H. whipplei by the Native Americans as well as its current uses in the modern world. It includes field study lessons and Hesperoyucca recipes.


Strategic Spelling Instruction, Casie Dawn James Jan 2006

Strategic Spelling Instruction, Casie Dawn James

Theses Digitization Project

The study proposes an alternative way for elementary school educators to instruct students in spelling. It suggests that spelling instruction should allow ample time for students to manipulate letters and patterns in their spelling words and provide time for writing. It also offers a two-week lesson plan of spelling instruction backed by research. The study was conducted using a mixed design with a predominantly Hispanic 6th grade class at a Title I school, with 60% of the students classified as English Language Learners. The study design consisted of observations of the students manipulating the spelling words, anecdotal notes taken while …


The Status Of English Language Learners Post Proposition 227 In Reading In The Leander Unified School District For The Years 1998-2001 Grades 2-11, Susana Leija Jan 2006

The Status Of English Language Learners Post Proposition 227 In Reading In The Leander Unified School District For The Years 1998-2001 Grades 2-11, Susana Leija

Theses Digitization Project

This project explored the impact of the implementation of Proposition 227 on SAT-9 scores in grades 2-11 of the Leander Unified School District. Minimal growth in test scores was found as a result of replacing the bilingual programs with English-only programs, contradicting claims by proponents of the proposition.


A Model For Incrementally Transforming The Science Classroom From Traditional Instruction To Inquiry, Tana Michelle Jerome Jan 2006

A Model For Incrementally Transforming The Science Classroom From Traditional Instruction To Inquiry, Tana Michelle Jerome

Theses Digitization Project

Explores the implementation of inquiry into the science classroom and presents a model for incrementally changing the traditional (behavioralist) instruction found in the science class to inquiry-based (constructivist) instructional strategies.


Adolescent Obesity: A Study Of The Effects Of Parent Attitudes On Physical Activity, John Arthur Fieldhouse Jan 2006

Adolescent Obesity: A Study Of The Effects Of Parent Attitudes On Physical Activity, John Arthur Fieldhouse

Theses Digitization Project

Examines the relationship between parent attitudes toward physical activity and physical activity in adolescents. One hundred forty-two students at Beaumont High School (Riverside County, California) completed a survey measuring their physical activity level, exercise self-efficacy, and their attitudes toward exercise. One hundred seven parents completed surveys measuring only their attitudes toward exercise. Results indicate that there is not a significant relationship between parental attitudes toward exercise and adolescent physical activity. Results also indicate that parent attitude toward physical activity is positively correlated with exercise self-efficacy in adolescents. In addition, the results indicate that gender is not a significant mediator in …


The Elements Of Filmmaking, James Patrick Hilliard Jan 2006

The Elements Of Filmmaking, James Patrick Hilliard

Theses Digitization Project

Presents an educational multimedia development project created to teach novice learners about the various elements of the film making process. The multimedia web site designed for this project was created using Macromedia Flash 8. The process involved surveying people to determine learner needs and alpha and beta testing the final project to gather data regarding functionality and learner satisfaction.


The Effects Of Gender On Preservice Teachers' Motivation On Teaching Physical Education, Kentaro Kajiyama Jan 2006

The Effects Of Gender On Preservice Teachers' Motivation On Teaching Physical Education, Kentaro Kajiyama

Theses Digitization Project

The project examines the effects of gender and academic achievement on motivation for teaching in physical education. A total of 57 (Female = 33; Male = 24) preservice teachers, randomly selected from a Physical Education Teacher Education (PETE) program in southern California participated in the study. Participants completed a Teacher Motivation for Teaching questionnaire (TMT-PE) and a demographic questionnaire. Results indicate that both male and female preservice teachers tend to be motivated for teaching by perceived feedback from other teachers, principals, and supervisors. Female teachers were more likely to be motivated by perceived feedback than male teachers.


Comparison Of The Three National Coaching Methods And Their Effectiveness To Coaching Competitive Soccer, Rolando Uribe Jan 2006

Comparison Of The Three National Coaching Methods And Their Effectiveness To Coaching Competitive Soccer, Rolando Uribe

Theses Digitization Project

Three general coaching methods have been developed to help increase the effectiveness of soccer coaches through appropriate training sessions and game analysis. This project examines and compares the different coaching courses and strategies sponsored by the American Youth Soccer Organization, National Soccer Coaches Association of America, and United States Soccer Federation.


Use Of Read Alouds To Increase Reading Comprehension, Heather Cynthia Williams Jan 2006

Use Of Read Alouds To Increase Reading Comprehension, Heather Cynthia Williams

Theses Digitization Project

There is a shift from learning to read towards reading to learn beginning in the fourth grade. This project focuses on the use of read alouds to teach concepts such as inference, generalization, and drawing conclusions to increase reading comprehension in fourth graders.