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Full-Text Articles in Education

The Effects Of Student Choice On Motivation And Writing Skills, Laura Annunziata May 2024

The Effects Of Student Choice On Motivation And Writing Skills, Laura Annunziata

Master's Theses

This mixed methods action research study investigates the potential effects of student choice on motivation and academic performance in writing-based assignments in a fourth-grade classroom. Baseline data was collected prior to implementation of student choice writing activities and then used to compare writing samples collected post intervention. The baseline data suggests that students’ attitudes towards autonomy are positive. Having choices was important to them and helped them learn better. However, data also indicates that while students were motivated to write using choice, many of the reading and writing competency scores dropped during journal entry writing samples. Data shows that while …


Implementing Music To Increase Elementary Student Focus, Kathryn Garceau May 2024

Implementing Music To Increase Elementary Student Focus, Kathryn Garceau

Master's Theses

This action research project used a mixed methods design to address the effect of different types of music on student focus while performing an independent task. Despite its success with memorization, does music work equally as well on student focus? Data was collected over a period of three weeks for 30 minutes each morning for 5 days each week. The music played while students completed the task changed each week. This included lyrical songs during week one, classical music during week two, and instrumental versions of songs students knew the lyrics to during week three. Four behavior markers were observed …


Key Benefits Of Small Group Instruction For Diverse Learners, Lydia Mcevoy May 2024

Key Benefits Of Small Group Instruction For Diverse Learners, Lydia Mcevoy

Master's Theses

Utilizing a mixed method approach this research study investigated the effects of small group instruction on the learning of diverse learners. Informed by a preliminary literature review that supports the use of small-group instruction, the researcher conducted a small-scale action research project to focus on three diverse learners in a 1st-grade classroom over four weeks. One of the findings of this project shows that small group instruction helps promote social and emotional skills as students feel more comfortable interacting with peers in a small group rather than in a whole group. Another finding indicates that students feel more encouraged by …


The Impact Of Online Tools On Student Writing, Rebekah Probst May 2024

The Impact Of Online Tools On Student Writing, Rebekah Probst

Master's Theses

Our classrooms today are vastly different from those just a few years ago. Many students are foreign to learning without any technology. In light of this drastic change in our classrooms, it is important to understand the new age's impacts on our students and their learning abilities. This research study used a mixed-methods design to explore online tools' effects on student writing. The research examines data collected from a fifth grade over two months, which included student writing samples and survey responses. This research compared outcomes between handwritten responses and those with access to tools such as automatic correction features. …


The Impact Of Play-Based Learning On Early Childhood Development, Aubry Mauro May 2024

The Impact Of Play-Based Learning On Early Childhood Development, Aubry Mauro

Master's Theses

This action research project emphasizes the recognized influence of play on children’s social, emotional, and cognitive growth. The researcher explored how play-based learning strategies contribute to students’ development, drawing insights from existing literature. The research used mixed methods to analyze the impact of play-based learning on social, emotional, and cognitive development in a sixth-grade classroom. The researcher collected data over six weeks. Initial findings showed the effect of play-based learning on students' development. The baseline data in this action research project showed that this group of students enjoys playing inside, outside, independently, or in a group. The researcher found that …