Education Commons^™

Impacts Of Makerspaces And Design Thinking On Creativity In Third-Grade Students, Renae Mcgauvran

Masters of Arts in Education Action Research Papers

This action research aimed to determine the impacts of makerspaces and design thinking on student perceptions of creativity. The study occurred in a rural North Dakota third-grade classroom during science instruction. There were two sections of 17 and 18 students, respectively. Students participated in makerspace activities, including designing and constructing their own paper house or school. Data was collected through pre- and post-surveys, an adjective checklist, and teacher observations of student behavior. Pre-assessment findings suggest students had a relatively positive view of creativity before the intervention. Findings suggest student perceptions of creativity improved following the intervention. Further research on the …

Elementary Teacher Perceptions Of Blended Learning In The Digital Classroom, Sarah Cummings

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Blended learning is an instructional model in which instruction is delivered using a combination of traditional teaching methods and online learning materials such as digital textbooks, virtual textbooks, and teacher-made videos. The problem was that elementary teachers in local schools were not implementing blended learning as intended by the school’s improvement plan. The purpose of this study was to examine the perspectives of elementary teachers in Grades 3-5 who have experience using blended learning. The framework for the study is the complex adaptive blended learning system (CABLS) because it helps examine the blended learning elements and the changes that result …

Elementary Teacher Perceptions Of Blended Learning In The Digital Classroom, Sarah Cummings

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Blended learning is an instructional model in which instruction is delivered using a combination of traditional teaching methods and online learning materials such as digital textbooks, virtual textbooks, and teacher-made videos. The problem was that elementary teachers in local schools were not implementing blended learning as intended by the school’s improvement plan. The purpose of this study was to examine the perspectives of elementary teachers in Grades 3-5 who have experience using blended learning. The framework for the study is the complex adaptive blended learning system (CABLS) because it helps examine the blended learning elements and the changes that result …

Implementation Of International Society For Technology In Education Standards In Elementary School Teachers’ Pedagogical Science Practices, Rochelle Anne Mccoy

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This study addressed the problem of whether elementary school teachers are consistently implementing the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) standards in their pedagogical practices of teaching science. It was evident that half of all teachers in the United States do not consistently implement technology into their instruction. The purpose of this study was to understand elementary school teachers’ perceptions about how teachers are using the three selected ISTE standards during their pedagogical practices when teaching elementary science in order to maximize learning. The technology acceptance model was the conceptual framework used in this study. The research questions focused …

Technology Integration By General Education Teachers Of English Language Learners, Marie Simone Anglin

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

There is a growing population of English language learners (ELLs) in elementary schools across the United States, and a current academic achievement gap between ELLs and non-ELLs. Researchers have found that integration of Web 2.0 tools has benefitted ELLs in language learning settings, outside of the general classroom. The research problem addressed in this study, based on TPACK, explored general education teachers' experiences with integrating Web 2.0 technology to support academic language acquisition by ELLs and revealed the successes and challenges the teachers encountered. The 6 female participants in this qualitative interview study were required to have experience (a) as …

Primary Teachers' Perspectives On Ipad Integration: Barriers, Challenges, And Successes, Richard Cory Campbell

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Despite the rapid expansion of mobile technologies in K-12 schools, recent research has shown that many teachers are ill prepared to take advantage of these new tools. This study was designed to address the problem of lack of effective iPad integration in primary classrooms at an international school in South Korea. The purpose of this case study was to examine primary teachers' perceptions of the implementation of an iPad initiative begun in 2012. Framed by Koehler and Mishra's technological pedagogical content knowledge model (TPACK), the study was guided by research questions that involved teachers' perceptions of the barriers, challenges, and …

The Effects Of Ipad Apps On Student Achievement In Literacy For Children In 2nd And 3rd Grade, Deena M. Reyes

Dissertations, Masters Theses, Capstones, and Culminating Projects

Many educators consider using educational iPad apps to supplement literacy curriculum and facilitate greater student engagement. Student literacy achievement is crucial at the lower elementary level. Students who do not progress through the grade level literacy standards of the Common Core State Standards need intervention instruction to achieve mastery. The purpose of this paper is to examine the effectiveness of using iPad apps based instruction in reading intervention programs for second and third grade students.

This study followed a mixed method approach, a pretest, post-test quasi experimental design where students enrolled in an after school reading intervention program used iPad …

Improvization And Strategic Risk Taking In Informal Learning With Digital Media Literacy, Renee Hobbs

Renee Hobbs

The city provides a rich array of learning opportunities for young children. However, in many urban schools, often it can be logistically difficult to get young children out of the building. But when elementary children are encouraged to view the city as a classroom and use digital media to explore and represent their neighborhoods, they can be inspired by the unpredictable events of daily life to ask naive, critical and sometimes troubling questions. This paper presents a case study of a teacher in an informal media literacy learning environment who worked with a group of 9-year-olds in Philadelphia. It documents …

9 O’Clock Scholar: An Educational Film Depicting The Major Activities During A Day In A First-Grade Classroom, Llewella Davies

All Master's Theses

This study was made to show how to plan and produce a film appropriate for informing lay citizens, parents, prospective teachers, and educators about the nature of instructional activities (learning experiences) in a modern first grade classroom.