Education Commons^™

Multi-Phase Homework Assignments In Cs I And Cs Ii, James Huggins

Computer Science Presentations And Conference Materials

ll of the panelists have used small sets of related programming assignments in introductory CS courses. These assignments are essentially larger programs which are developed during several separate phases. This approach has several advantages: • Students are able to develop more realistic and interesting programs. • Students are motivated to write better code as well as documentation. Those who don't are quickly confronted by the implications. • Student interest in completing the projects is better sustained, since there is continuity from one project to the next. • It models desirable techniques such as iterative development and encapsulation. • It demonstrates …

The Practice Of Adoption: History, Trends, And Social Context, Amanda Baden, Kathy P. Zamostny, Karen M. O'Brien, Mary O'Leary Wiley

Department of Counseling Scholarship and Creative Works

This article presents an overview of the practice of adoption to counseling psychologists to promote clinical understanding of the adoption experience and to stimulate research on adoption. The article includes definitions of adoption terminology, important historical and legal developments for adoption, a summary of adoption statistics, conceptualizations of adoption experience, themes and trends in adoption outcome research related to adoptees and birthparents, and selected theoretical models of adoption. The importance of considering social context variables in adoption practice and research is emphasized.

Bohmian Dialogue: A Promising Pedagogy For Transformative Learning?, Leslie G. Mcbride, Robin A. Voetterl, Mary K. Kinnick

Community Health Faculty Publications and Presentations

Between 1997 and 2002, dialogue, a process developed by the late theoretical physicist David Bohm and philosopher Krishnamurti, was adapted and used as the central form of pedagogy within two interdisciplinary courses at Portland State University. The purpose of this workshop is, through an interactive experience, to provide participants with an introductory understanding of Bohmian dialogue and its promise as a pedagogy for transformative teaching and learning in higher education. Throughout the past several years, Bohmian dialogue has developed into a process in which meaning and knowledge are created and shared between and among educators and learners during the learning …

Rapping To Review: A Novel Strategy To Engage Students And Summarize Course Material, Maureen T. Knabb

Biology Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Enhancing Institutional Capacity Building Of Non-Governmental Organizations (Ngos) And Community Based Organizations (Cbos): Impact Of An Innovative Initiative, Muhammad Memon, Shahzad Mithani

Book Chapters / Conference Papers

This paper attempts to unpack the notion and process of institutional capacity building of NGOs / CBOs in rural and semi-urban areas if the Sindh province. Several NGOs / CBOs and other organizations tend to take initiatives embedded in the ‘first order’ changes which are of incremental nature and have failed to contribute substantially towards enhancing their institutional capacity building. In 1999, the AKU-IED was engaged in enhancing institutional capacity building of selected NGOs and CBOs in Sindh through ‘second order’ changes for promoting education in general and female education in particular. The process of the transformational development of these …

Challenges And Learning Opportunities Involved In The Professional Development Of Mathematics Teachers Within The Government Sector, Sardar Ahmed Khan, Nadeem Asghar Kirmani

Book Chapters / Conference Papers

As Professional Development Teachers (PDTs), we have been working in the government sector for the last several years to improve the profile of Mathematics teachers within the sector. Our experience of the Professional Development of teachers suggests that working in the government sector is not an easy task. However, neither is it an impossible one. The government’s system faces varied challenges in tackling the professional development needs of teachers. The most important one is the capacity of the professional staff to undertake this mammoth job. Secondly, there is a strong need to change the perceptions of policymakers to consider the …

An Integrated Approach To School Development In Northern Areas Of Pakistan, Mola Dad Shafa

Book Chapters / Conference Papers

I started my career as a primary school teacher working for the Aga Khan Education Service in the Northern Areas of Pakistan. I was one of AKU-IED’s first-cohort Professional Development Teachers (PDTs), and was the only course participant from the Northern Areas of Pakistan in the first MEd course. Having completed the MEd degree from AKU-IED, I went back to my parent institution and was assigned the management of 30 schools. My post-MEd work, which reflects an integrated approach to school development, ranges from conducting professional development programmes for teachers and head teachers, increasing students’ voice in school improvement-related decisions, …

Comparison Of Grade Point Average Of Honor Senior Students And College Of Liberal Arts Senior Students At A Florida University, Iwasan D. Kejawa Ed.D

Department of Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Attrition rates in theHonor College program division of Florida Atlantic University have risen in recent years. It has been determined that even though a higher high school grade point average is required for admission into the honor program of the university, many applicants to the program were under-prepared to asumme the workload demanded of the students by the Honor College. The requirements for admission into the honor program of the Florida Atlantic University is an overall high school grade point average of 3.5 and a score of 1000 points on the SAT examination while the requirement into the College of …

Mathematical Mind Journeys: Awakening Minds To Computational Fluency, Susan Austine Ebdon, Mary Mcgee Coakley, Danielle S. Legnard

Education Faculty Publications

Connecticut's New Canaan Public Schools has a mission of mathematical literacy for all children and has undergone an extensive curriculum review process over the past six years. Designing reformed curriculum and ensuring computational fluency have been shared visions for the district's mathematics educators, including the authors of this article. We are three teachers who have taught across levels K-12 and have led the mathematics initiative as mathematics resource teachers, mathematics coordinators, and building administrators. We coined the term "Mathematical Mind Journey," or "MMJ," to describe the adventure we take our students on each day. MMJs support the Process and Content …

The Maine Learning Technology Initiative: Teacher, Student, And School Perspectives, Mid-Year Evaluation Report, David L. Silvernail Phd, Walter J. Harris Phd, Dawn M.M. Lane, Janet C. Fairman Phd, Paula B. Gravelle, Lori Smith, Katherine I. Sargent, Walter Mcintire

Education Technology

This report presents some early evaluation evidence on the effectiveness and impact of the implementation of the Maine Learning Technology Initiative (MLTI). The goal of the Year One evaluation, which is being conducted by the Maine Education Policy Research Institute (MEPRI), is to provide policymakers and practitioners with information that will assist them in determining whether or not, and to what degree, the vision and goals of the MLTI are being achieved. The Year One design is focusing primarily on the students who entered seventh grade in September 2002, and their teachers and schools.

The MEPRI evaluation team has focused …

Supporting The Language Agenda In Teacher Development: Preparing Teachers/Or Culturally And Linguistically Diverse Students At The New Teacher Professional Development Institute, Andrew Habana Hafner

Master's Capstone Projects

No abstract provided.

Creating Spaces For Voices: The Portfolio As A Framework To Support Enquiry Into Third Level Teaching And Learning, Roisin Donnelly

Conference papers

This paper will discuss qualitative research that was conducted in our professional practice in supporting academic staff in third level learning and teaching. Our goal was to understand more fully the process of compiling a teaching portfolio through supporting the academic staff in their development of an authentic voice. The scholarship of teaching has been of growing interest to the institution from which this Postgraduate Certificate in Third Level Learning and Teaching Course is delivered. This reflects a worldwide focus. Badley's research on HEFCE (2002) "what is required is for all teaching to be animated by scholarship and for scholarship …

An Online Dilemma: The Pull Of Individuality Pitched Against Peer Collaboration In An Online Problem-Based Learning Group, Roisin Donnelly

Conference papers

In early 2001, a new Postgraduate Diploma in Third Level Learning and Teaching was launched for lecturers from a range of higher education institutions in the Republic of Ireland. This paper describes ongoing research undertaken for the re-design of one module out of the eight offered on the Postgraduate Diploma: the Online Learning (OL) Module delivered using the pedagogical strategy of Problem-based Learning (PBL). This Postgraduate Diploma is entirely voluntary and only lecturers who are keen to implement novel pedagogical approaches in their own subject disciplines apply for a place on the modules. The aim of the OL/PBL module is …

Using The Theory Of Planned Behaviour To Predict Leisure Educators’ Intentions To Use Instructional Technology, Jennifer Y. Mak, Craig M. Ross

Management Faculty Research

The Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) (Ajzen, 1991b) was applied to the prediction and explanation of the intention to use instructional technology by using a mail questionnaire (n = 406) of leisure educators in the United States and Canada. Based on structural equation modeling, it was found that the key determinants of the TPB, attitude toward instructional technology, subjective norm toward instructional technology, and perceived behavioural control toward instructional technology accounted for 50% of the leisure educators’ intention to use instructional technology. The strongest predictor of intention was attitude toward instructional technology, followed by subjective norm toward instructional technology and …

Differentiated Instruction : Does It Work?, Michelle Maher

Graduate Research Papers

The fact that every child is unique poses a dilemma for educators. The model for differentiated instruction requires teachers to be flexible in their approach to adjusting the curriculum and presentation of information to learners. Noting that there is no recipe for differentiation, this paper discusses the broad principles and characteristics that are useful in establishing a differentiated classroom. Studies explore the impact differentiated instruction has on students, and research highlights what must be done to transition beliefs about differentiated instruction into action. The outcome of this review indicates mixed results regarding differentiated instruction and implementation. Further research is suggested …

Online Writing As A Form Of Electronic Communication In A Second Year Biology Course, Michael Barbour, Michael A. J. Collins

Education Faculty Publications

Over the past decade, the proliferation of technology in the realm of teaching has occurred at a phenomenal rate. From the smallest integration of technology into the classroom to entire courses being taught in an online environment, the use of computers by students and teachers has continued to increase.

This paper considers student use of an online discussion forum in a second year Biology course and how that participation may be an indicator of increased student success in the course. The authors discuss how participation in the online discussion forum is a form of public writing in which the students …

Early Intervention With Children At Risk Of Emotional/Behavioral Disorders: A Critical Examination Of Research Methodology And Practices, Peggy P. Hester, Heather M. Baltodano, Robert A. Gable, Stephen W. Tonelson, Jo M. Hendrickson

Communication Disorders & Special Education Faculty Publications

Children's behavior problems pose challenges to families, schools, and society. The research literature argues that early detection/intervention is the most powerful course of action in ameliorating these problems in children at risk of emotional/behavioral disorders. However, specifying precisely what constitutes a quality program of early intervention is not a simple task. Current conceptualizations suggest that successful early intervention cannot be unidimensional in nature, but must consist of a complex series of interactions and transactions that synergistically serve to nurture and enhance both the development of the child and family. In this paper, we reviewed the accumulated research to learn more …

The Role Educational Technology Plays In Student Achievement And Teacher Preparation, Overton Howard Bean

Graduate Research Papers

The role of technology in the classroom, as a tool for improving student achievement, has received much attention in education today. Teacher preparation programs are making efforts to produce computer literate and competent users of educational technology. This author focuses on the role of educational technology, including the Internet. Consideration is also given to changes in teacher preparation that integrate new technologies into methods courses, as areas that could potentially lead to improved achievement levels for all students.

Laptop Computers In The K-12 Setting : The Effect On Instructional Strategies And Student Learning, Sarah Merriam

Graduate Research Papers

Research has shown the benefits of computers. But mobile computing by the use of laptop computers has only recently been studied in K-12 classrooms. This review paper discusses various research studies that focus on how laptop computers affect student learning, how laptops affect instruction, teachers' perceptions about using laptop computers, and specific school districts that have implemented laptop computers into their curriculum. Overall, the research shows that laptops are more convenient and meet educational objectives once teachers and students adapt to the new technological way of learning.

Active Learning Techniques To Teach Spanish Vocabulary, Sara E. Janssen

Graduate Research Papers

The journal article, "Pictures, John Travolta moves, and Sign Language: Active Learning Techniques to Teach Spanish Vocabulary," discusses the experiences 8th grade Spanish students had while using three instructional practices for learning vocabulary. Active learning strategies are a popular method for educators, especially those at the middle level. Educators can get their students active in learning by doing many different things. Pictures, "silly signs," and sign language were used to engage my students in learning fourteen Spanish vocabulary words.

Three groups of Spanish exploratory classes were the subjects in this study. Each of the three groups received instruction using one …

The Benefits And Liabilities Of Ability Grouping In Elementary School Classrooms, Jill Miller

Graduate Research Papers

Ability grouping, the practice of homogeneously grouping students for instruction, is topic of much debate in education. The purpose of this paper is to identify advantages and disadvantages of ability grouping for students as well as for teachers in the elementary school setting through research of literature available. Further, implications of ability grouping as a method of instruction are discussed.