Education Commons^™

Student-Led Conferences In The Early Childhood Classroom, Lizzie Van Wyk

Master of Education Program Theses

This action research project investigated the relationship between student-led conferencing and parent involvement and satisfaction. Student-led conferences were held in four early childhood classrooms in Michigan, in the hopes that parent involvement and satisfaction would increase. A fifth classroom implemented traditional parent-teacher conferences. A parent satisfaction survey was created to measure parent understanding of their student’s academic performance, parent satisfaction, and parent plans for future attendance of conferences. The results indicate that while student-led conferences may impact parent communication and involvement in the classroom, there is not a direct correlation between parent satisfaction and student-led conferences.

Instructional Design With A Language Lens: Preparing Educators For Multilingual Classrooms, Amy J. Heineke, Wenjin Guo, Luke Carman, Mctighe & Associates

Education: School of Education Faculty Publications and Other Works

Classrooms are more diverse than ever before with increasing numbers of multilingual students who are developing English proficiency while simultaneously being expected to learn and perform in English in literacy and the content areas. In the context of the United States, previous efforts to prepare teachers for the heterogeneous population of students have led to simplified curriculum that limits children’s equitable access to rigorous disciplinary learning. This chapter probes one project’s efforts to build capacity in schools by holistically preparing educators across grades and disciplines to provide equitable instruction for students labeled as English learners. Using a framework that added …

A Descriptive Mixed-Methods Study Examining Teachers’ Needs And Preferences For Technology Integration Professional Development, Amber Birden

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine teachers’ needs and preferences for technology integration professional development (PD). To guide the study, three research questions were developed: (1) What are teachers’ needs and preferences for technology integration professional development in K-12 schools?, (2) How are teachers currently integrating technology for teaching and learning in their classroom?, and (3) How do teachers perceive technology benefits and usefulness of technology integration for teaching and learning?

This was a descriptive mixed methods study. The research study included 33 educators from six different U.S. states. Quantitative data was collected from the technology needs assessment …

Effectively Integrating Technology To Engage Students And Meet Learning Objectives In Language Arts Classrooms, Jessica L. Austin

Theses and Dissertations

Technology is an ever-changing resource that is more advanced now than it has ever been. This action research project explored how teachers intentionally plan the use of technology in their classroom based on the objectives that need to be taught. The main study that this action research explores is how teacher align objectives to integrate intentional technology that engages students in the middle school ELA classroom? By collecting data via questioning, interviewing, observing and collaboration among participants, the findings show that the use of technology in the classroom is most efficient when implementing a backwards design approach to lesson planning.

Pandemic Paranoia And Proximity: A Transformation, Joseph S. Pizzo

New Jersey English Journal

COVID-19 has transformed the manner in which students are being educated. Social distance, sterilization, and remoteness have replaced teaming, personalization, and classroom proximity. Contact tracing stirs fears, often replacing creative writing and skill-building. Fear and separation have become commonplace.

Poetry Beyond The Page: A Case For Spoken Word Poetry In Florida's Secondary Classrooms, Sarah Matherly

Senior Honors Theses

Florida’s B.E.S.T. Standards, Florida’s most recent K-12 educational standards to promote literacy, lack the rising art of Spoken Word Poetry. However, Florida’s Department of Education should integrate Spoken Word into Florida’s Secondary curriculum. Spoken Word Poetry, by its definition, holds researched benefits that align with the B.E.S.T. Standard’s poetry recommendations and literacy-centered goals. In light of such benefits, Florida’s Department of Education should consider various Spoken Word poets and poems to include in Florida’s Secondary Curriculum, as well as explore the resources and integration methods included in this thesis for both teachers and students.

Coaching By Scaffolding: Increasing Teacher Questioning Through Structured Modeling And Feedback, Sarah J. Little

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this dissertation was to explore the effects of the Gradual Increase of Responsibility Model (Collet, 2008) when used by coaches to mentor teachers in best questioning practices in kindergarten through second grade classrooms. The researcher focused on questioning practices after observing missed opportunities to extend student thinking in primary school classrooms during teacher-student conferences in both reading and writing. Vicki Collet’s Gradual Increase of Responsibility Model (2008) was chosen as a coaching model based on the wide range of teacher experiences in the researcher’s educational setting. This coaching model allowed the researcher to scaffold teachers based on …

Developing Kinesthetic Classrooms To Promote Active Learning, Brian Culp

Faculty Articles

The use of kinesthetic movement in the classroom toward improving health and educational outcomes among youth has been a topic of discourse in recent years. School initiatives that have infused movement as part of the curriculum have shown to increase efficiency in learning, while decreasing stress and contributing to a positive classroom climate. One question that is worthy of exploration pertains to how future professionals in the fields of physical education and health can promote kinesthetic movement in schools and communities. This article discusses how a university kinesthetic classroom prepares future professionals to be advocates for school health using active …

Understanding Long-Term English Language Learners In The Developmental Classroom Of A Community College, Stanley S. Snelson

Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative, phenomenological study is focused on 13 identified LTELLs currently enrolled in a community college classroom near the Texas-Mexico border. Both male and female students were identified and invited for participation based on an initial questionnaire Through an emic, qualitative lens, this research explores the beliefs that LTELLs hold with regard to language, educational supports, and gender in college. Second, the research looks to understand how these beliefs may impact the education of LTELLs currently enrolled in developmental classes of a community college. The driving overarching questions were: (1.) How do LTELLs perceive their own use of language? (2.) …

Fluency Instruction In Contemporary Core Reading Programs, Brady E. Donaldson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Core reading programs (CRPs) provide the curriculum and guide reading instruction for many classroom teachers. The purpose of this study was to conduct a content analysis of reading fluency instruction in current (2008-2011 copyright) grade 2 and 3 top-selling core reading program lessons to answer the following two research questions: (1) How do core reading programs recommend that fluency skills be taught? (2) How do reading fluency instructional practices in core programs compare to evidence-based reading fluency instructional practices defined in current research? The results of the analysis revealed that fluency instruction is more prevalent in current core reading programs …

Meeting The Needs Of Gifted Students At Quail Run Elementary School: An Action Research Report, Shannon L. Bryant

The Corinthian

Appropriately differentiating for gifted students can be a daunting task. There are many issues to consider when individualizing instruction for the gifted and talented student population. I teach gifted students in an elementary resource setting. This Action Research paper identifies a number of the issues I discovered when conducting my action research project-meeting the needs of my gifted students. I also offer recommendations on how I plan to improve my teaching in particular and gifted education at Quail Run Elementary in general.

The Revolutions In Knowledge And Literary Theory: Their Impact On English Classrooms, Nancy Topping Bazin

English Faculty Publications

Since teachers, scholars, and scientists began in recent decades to study people who were previously marginalized or totally ignored, revolutions have occurred in knowledge and in literary theories and criticism. An increasing number of literature teachers acknowledge that they cannot ignore these significant changes. Indeed, they recognize that because of multicultural and global awareness, new questions are constantly being asked, new kinds of research are being done, and new approaches are being t:iken to subject matter.

Groupthink And The Classroom: Changing Familiar Patterns To Encourage Critical Thought, Scott D. Johnson, Richard L. Weaver Ii

Rhetoric and Communication Studies Faculty Publications

Groupthink is an unhealthy decision-making pattern characterized by a high degree of cohesiveness and a striving for consensus among the members of a decision-making group. This article considers the classroom as a potential contributor to the groupthink phenomenon, comparing the antecedent conditions for group think with typical classroom conditions and expectations. With a plausible, though unproven, link between the classroom and group think decision making, four suggestions are offered teachers for encouraging independent thought and action in students. The four suggestions include adding critical-thinking skills, decision-making skills, small group communication skills, and conflict management skills to the curriculum. These additions …