Education Commons^™

Six Stories: An Examination Of What It Means To Be Asian American, Gillian Sherman

Graduate Student Independent Studies

The author, who herself identifies as Asian American, engages in a personal exploration of her own and others’ experiences of being Asian in America.Through a review of the literature of documented stereotypes of Asian Americans as well as interviews the author conducted with five women who identify as Asian-American, an examination of what it means to be Asian American is presented. Futher, consideration of the impact of international and interracial adoption experiences on the identity development of adoptees from East Asian countries is explored through two of the interviewees’ experiences who were adopted as well the author’s own experience of …

The Apple Trees School : Adapting The Developmental-Interaction Approach In South Korea, Jeffrey B. Rogers

Graduate Student Independent Studies

In August 2016, one year from this writing, a team of educators will embark on adapting the developmental-interaction approach to a newly founded early elementary school in Gyeongsan, South Korea. This paper seeks to address the challenges and rewards inherent in such a project through examining critical issues such as intercultural competence and teacher relationships

The Sun Is Yellow, The Bird Is Black : Fostering A Progressive Pedagogy In Rural Rwanda, Stephanie L. Davis

Graduate Student Independent Studies

An experiential narrative of how the author applied asset-based progressive pedagogical approaches to develop curricular context and help foster creative teaching strategies at a rural public school in the village of Musha, Rwanda over the course of three weeks in June 2013.

Farming And Education : An Interview Project Advocating For Farm-Based Education, Rebekah Mindel

Graduate Student Independent Studies

This thesis is meant to inspire educators to value farm-based education in which farming and education come together in experiential, inquiry-based learning.

Reclaiming Subjecthood : Education And The Art Of Quality Experience, Emily Joy Sullivan

Graduate Student Independent Studies

This essay draws on writings in education, philosophy, psychology, neuroscience, and social work to articulate values for educational practice. It looks at individual development, relationship, and art as three fundamental areas of quality experience and education. Within and across these arenas, three themes repeatedly surface: attention, critical mindedness, and the balance of process and product.

An Alphabet Of The Arts, Jessica Barksdale

Graduate Student Independent Studies

The purpose of this project is to create an arts resource book, inspired by the Reggio Emilia approach, for classroom teachers.

How Quaker Is A Quaker School? : Looking For Evidence Of Quaker Practice, Diane Brown Mcdougall

Graduate Student Independent Studies

Explores how a solid foundation for the vibrant practice of Quakerism in schools is created by the principles that underlie the Quaker Testimonies of Simplicity, Peace, Integrity, Community, Equality, and Stewardship. Includes personal interviews with teachers as well as results of a survey given to teachers about their comfort level with using Quaker practice, teaching Quaker Testimonies, and speaking to their students about "that of God in everyone."

Fostering Global Citizens In The Infant And Toddler Classroom For The Cultivation Of A Culture Of Humanism, Stefanie Horton

Graduate Student Independent Studies

The purpose of this study is to examine meaningful philosophies and practices of education and care that may contribute to the fostering of youth who respect and value the dignity of all life.

Educating Towards Democracy In Infant/Toddler Classrooms : The Example Of The Bank Street Family Center, Kristina A. Satchell

Graduate Student Independent Studies

This project hopes to shed light on the possibilities and importance of including the youngest citizens of the country (children aged zero-three), their families and their teachers in the discourse and practices of democratic classrooms.

Lesson Study At The Bank Street School For Children, Ryan Harrity

Graduate Student Independent Studies

Lesson study, the primary form of professional development in Japan, is receiving increased attention in the U. S. Its efficacy in Japan is well documented, and it has been successfully implemented in the U. S. Other educator-scholars have adequately argued for its use in American schools. What is needed, however, is more documented evidence of its implementation and outcomes, as well as school-specific frameworks for conducting lesson study in various schools, especially independent schools. There has been extensive documentation of lesson study in public schools across the U. S., but none, as we know, in independent schools. This paper establishes …

"Endemic Uncertainties" : Teachers' Professional Lives In The High-Stakes Reform Movement, Harris Sockel

Graduate Student Independent Studies

Explores the effects that principles of certainty have on teachers' professional lives and their attitudes toward their work.

Mentoring Novice And Experienced Teachers On Block Play Using The Developmental-Interaction Approach In The Philippines, Kathrina Gancayco-Umali

Graduate Student Independent Studies

Traces the journey of traditional early childhood Filipino teachers in implementing the developmental-interaction approach in the block corner. Five novice and experienced teachers embarked on a professional development series of four mentoring sessions. As a result of this process, teachers have demonstrated confidence and involvement in implementing the use of unit blocks through the developmental-interaction approach and administration agreed to adapt this as a model design for the early childhood program.

Creating Conversations, Changing Cultures: Case Study Of A Professional Development Plan, Alexis Goldberg

Graduate Student Independent Studies

There's a lot working against authentic demonstrations of thinking, and legitimate avenues of collaboration in our school cultures. We force-feed students high-stakes tests that promote a single "right answer" instead of multiple solution paths. Despite research that suggests teachers learn best from each other, we promote the ideal of the teacher-as-­maverick. Many of our systems endorse closed-set, closed-door thinking that leaves room for neither independent student thinking nor the collaborative generation of ideas.

Breaking cultures this strong, this endemic, is a weighty task. In a yearlong case study, Alexis Goldberg creates and executes a professional development plan that engages with …

Bank Street And Teach For America: Process And Preparation, Paul Shirk

Graduate Student Independent Studies

In this paper I analyze the goals and practices of education that are implied in the mission statements and literature of Bank Street College of Education (Bank Street) and Teach for America (TFA). I noticed and struggled to understand the tension between the mission statements of the two organizations that I was a part of during my master's program. While analyzing the readings and my experiences, I began to see differences between these two organizations' theories and beliefs about child development. I considered how my experiences with children supported or refuted these beliefs. From Bank Street, I recognized many beliefs …

Lessons Of Place : A Critical Look At Place-Based Education, Karen L. Lew

Graduate Student Independent Studies

This thesis consists of: a rationale for place-based education; the developmental appropriateness of place-based education in elementary education; examples of place-based education; and a list of place-based education resources. Also included is an overview of the impact of standards based reform on education in the United States and the author's experience of the Bank Street Long Trip.

Philosophy And Practice: Examining Classroom Management In Progressive Education Settings, Jessica Anzelone

Graduate Student Independent Studies

Are John Dewey's and Lucy Sprague Mitchell's twentieth century hopes for classroom management realized in the early twenty-first century practices in progressive schools? The viewpoints of these two pioneers in progressive education create the backdrop for examining the execution of classroom management in present-day progressive educational settings in this study. In order to examine classroom management in practice, three classroom observations and teacher interviews were conducted in progressive schools in New York City. These observations and interviews are compared and analyzed through the lens of Dewey and Mitchell's thoughts about the functioning of a classroom. The study does not claim …

Play In Public Schools, Casey Yanella

Graduate Student Independent Studies

This is a research paper and literature review on the issue of play and developmentally appropriate practice in the public schools of New York City during the era of No Child Left Behind. It begins with an examination of the theory surrounding play in the primary grades, along with the discussion of studies dealing with play in today's public schools. The work includes school visits and an ethnographic description of the models of play environments in these schools. Finally, it also includes recommendations for programmatic actions to be taken in order to reinstate play in public schools.

Searching For Meaning: A Personal And Historical Exploration Of Progressive Education, Molly M. Lippman

Graduate Student Independent Studies

In this study the author seeks to better understand the meaning of progressive education. This study does not attempt to answer the question What is progressive education?, but rather it seeks to bring the question to the forefront of the minds of fellow thoughtful, reflective, progressive educators who, like the author, struggle with the contradictions and discrepancies present among progressive educators, both historically and contemporarily. Utilizing Sara Lawrence-Lightfoot's style of portraiture (1997, with J. H. Davis), the author writes in the narrative style, sharing with the reader three conversations with progressive educators whose work has informed her own educational philosophy. …

No More A-/A/-Apple: An Examination Of Kindergarten And First Grade Phonics Within A Progressive Framework, Arielle R. Derby

Graduate Student Independent Studies

Examines the approach to teaching literacy taken by back to basics and progressive educators, and the role of phonics within each type of literacy program. The necessity and application of phonics for kindergarten and first grade children is discussed, grounded in the author's experience teaching in a progressive private school and a back to basics charter school. I found from research and my experience, that phonics is a necessary component for any complete literacy program. In addition, learning phonics has a stronger and more positive effect on children's early reading and writing when it is taught within a developmentally appropriate, …

Sensory Integration Dysfunction In Urban Head Start Populations: Why Children Have This Disorder And What Teachers Can Do About It, Helen Frazier

Graduate Student Independent Studies

This paper addresses the environmental causes of and treatment for sensory integration disorder among children living in urban poverty. Established and current research is examined in order to provide a foundation for the practical aspects of this paper. This paper presents a general description of a Head Start program designed to support sensory integration and includes specific activities that support the tactile, proprioceptive and vestibular sensory systems. It concludes that, as a result of pre- and post-natal environmental factors that interfere with effective sensory integration, many Head Start children are not yet ready to learn to read.

A Progressive Philippine School For Children: Proposal And Presentation For Prospective Parents, Severina M. Santos

Graduate Student Independent Studies

Presents a philosophical framework for a proposed elementary school in the Philippines, the Philippine School for Children (PSC). It summarizes the major contributions of a family of theorists: Piaget, Dewey, and Vygotsky and applies their theories to the development of PSC. The study also includes a description of several features of a progressive classroom for kindergarten and grade one.

The content of the study serves as a basis for the presentation of a progressive approach to education to prospective parents. Possible questions from prospective parents are raised and addressed at the conclusion of the study.

Improving Teacher Preparation: Addressing The Needs Of New Teachers In Small, Progressive, Public Schools, Christina J. Dixon

Graduate Student Independent Studies

As an institution committed to progressive education, Bank Street College shares the mission of educating for democracy with New York's small, progressive public schools. Case studies of three students and semi-structured interviews with Bank Street instructors and researchers illustrate the strengths and weaknesses of Bank Street's Professional Development in Early Adolescence program in preparing its graduates to teach successfully in small, progressive public school environments. Through a literature review, six distinct areas of teaching expertise are identified as factors which contribute to a teacher's success in such schools: Understanding the Child, Social Context, Classroom Life, Academic, Interpersonal and Professional. The …

The Experiencing Of Democracy And Progressive Education: A Constructivist Approach To Mathematics, A Workshop For Teachers, Preminda Langer

Graduate Student Independent Studies

Chronicles the history of schooling in India, discusses the development of the constructivist classroom, and shares a series of math workshops for teachers for nursery and kindergarten classrooms in India.

Reflections On A Third Grade Social Studies Curriculum, Laura E. Gerrity

Graduate Student Independent Studies

This curriculum study is a narrative account of a teacher and the social studies curriculum she uses with her third grade class. The curriculum is divided into two main parts. One is a study of the students' culture and family history which involves interviews with the children's parents, an examination of maps and literature from those cultures, and a description of the way the students experience the study through their writings, drawings, and conversation.

The second part of the study is an investigation of the students' neighborhood and community. Through interviews with community members, neighborhood walks, and their own observations, …

Interpretations Of Progressive Education: A Comparative Study Of The Philosophies Of Education Of The Municipal Early Childhood Schools Of Reggio Emilia And The Bank Street College Of Education, Monica Della Croce

Graduate Student Independent Studies

Compares the progressive philosophies of education of the municipal infant-toddler centers and preprimary schools of Reggio Emilia, and Bank Street College of Education and its School for Children. The histories and theoretical origins of each philosophy of education are introduced. Elaborations on the fundamental principles of each are provided, including discussions of the creation of learning environments, the perception of children's learning, the roles of teachers, and the place of the community. Throughout the text, cultural frameworks are made evident, in order to reflect on the influence that culture and history have on the ways in which progressive philosophies of …

The Founding Of A School: An Oral History Of The Abraham Joshua Heschel School, Joan Yotive Berland

Graduate Student Independent Studies

The Abraham Joshua Heschel School was founded in the early 1980's by Peter Geffen and other Jewish professionals and laypersons who were committed to a school that was independent of any synagogue or organization. A school where a wide range of Jewish beliefs and practices along with secular studies could be integrated through intellectual, academic, ethical, artistic, social and emotional realms.

By conducting interviews with 4 or the 8 people who taught or worked at the Heschel school when it opened in 1983, it was possible to collect an oral history that revealed aspects which were significant in founding and …

The Post Office : A Social Studies Curriculum For Seven And Eight Year Olds, Carol Ribner

Graduate Student Independent Studies

This paper presents a curriculum that I have developed and used with my class of second graders over the past three years. The curriculum is the study of the Post Office as part of a study of the neighborhood, and the subsequent planning and running of a schoolwide post office.

Once A Teacher: Biography Of Mildred L. Johnson Edwards, Black Educator, Juanita Isabel Coleman

Graduate Student Independent Studies

This biography for 8 to 13 year old children describes Mildred L. Johnson Edward's life as a student - one of the few black children at the Ethical Culture Schools for many years, her unsuccessful search for a student-teaching position in New York City's private schools, and her decision at the age of 20 to found a private school where she could give black children an alternative to the kind of public education they were being offered.