Education Commons^™

Realities Of The First-Year Of Teaching Research On The Inspiration Behind, Reality Of, And Effects Of A First-Year Teacher., Rebecca Peterson

CGU Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this research was to identify the factors which lend to and negatively impact student success, taking a specific look at the Pomona area and tracking the experiences of one first-year teacher and three of their students throughout an entire academic year in the charter school setting. Beginning with research on the experiences and beliefs which motivated an individual teacher to join the field of education, it then assesses how the academic and cultural backgrounds of three different students lend to their overall identity and school success. The latter research identifies factors within the city itself which affect …

Parent Involvement In Contested Times: A Brief Analysis Of The Effects Of Anti-Immigrant Policies On Latinx Immigrant Parent Involvement, Maria Isabel Morales

CGU Theses & Dissertations

How do perceived community and school cultural values affect Latinx immigrant parents’ decisions to engage with their children’s schools? What lessons might their experiences have for our understanding of parent involvement beyond the parameters of traditional models of parent involvement? Engaging parents as advocates for school success in the home is particularly important for English Language Learners (ELs). Tapping into the experiences of EL parents is a resource educators can use to increase parental involvement and, consequently, student academic achievement.

This qualitative case study grounded in Critical Inquiry and Cultural Historic Activity Theory examined the perceptions and experiences of 5 …

Safe At Home: My Journey From Student To Teacher, Elena Fregoso

CGU Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this ethnography is to examine my journey through my first full year teaching. The main subjects of this work are myself, along with my 10^th grade World History students from Monte Vista High School. Through an examination of my personal history, as well as interviews with students and their parents, I have traced my effectiveness as a first-year teacher, through my ability to meet each student’s needs, as well as the development of relationships with each of my three focus students. Through personal anecdotes and the examination of assessment data, I have tracked my student’s progress …

Memories Of The Teacher: A Reflection Of Enduring Ideals, Katherine Cooke

CGU Theses & Dissertations

In order to educate my students in my first year of teaching, I embarked upon a research project that would allow me to get to know their strengths and needs in addition to identifying my own possible biases and pre-conceived educational ideas. My research spreads from my own life to the lives of three focus students from various populations: one English learner, one student who receives special education services, and one student who has had significant life experiences that might contribute to his academic work. I interviewed all three students and their families to develop an action plan to help …

Veteran K-6 Public School Teachers: Remaining Committed And Staying Engaged In Their Careers, Leslie Young

CGU Theses & Dissertations

This phenomenological qualitative study involved 15 veteran K-6 public school teachers – each having taught a minimum of 24 years - from several districts in Southern California. It identified and examined what factors influenced the ongoing commitment and engagement of these teachers over the course of their careers. Factors mirrored the study’s theoretical framework and included: 1) the teacher’s challenges, 2) the teacher’s personal characteristics or attributes, and 3) the teacher’s professional life phases.

A majority of the teachers interviewed spoke to the escalation of the environmental challenges they confronted while on the job, such as, student behavior, administrative and …

Learning Journey As An Educator Ethnography, Seleni Alcantar

CGU Theses & Dissertations

What makes an effective teacher? This is the question I have tried to answer as I developed this ethnographic narrative. What is written here for you to read is an outline of what my experiences have been for the past two years, although it could have been my first year of teaching, but because I set back in the program, I will talk about both my first and second year of teaching. It traces back to the early expectations and hopes to more complex understandings of my students and myself. It has been 19 months since I started writing my …

The Role Of Quality Education In The Economic Development Of Mexico, Betzayra Perez

CMC Senior Theses

Mexico’s education system ranks among the lowest in terms of quality and achievement levels. Given the importance of education for a country’s economic development, it is crucial to understand how improvements in Mexico’s education quality can result in economic growth for the country. This thesis aims to create awareness about how the quality of learning rather than total schooling can result in improving Mexico’s economic development. First, a general literature review provides significant findings of the quality of education, the difference between learning and schooling, and educational equity, and its effects on economic development. Moreover, a detailed overview of the …

Ethnographic Narrative Project, Kimberly Goodwin

CGU Theses & Dissertations

This paper details the journey of a first-year teacher. It is a highly reflective exploration of their inner landscape – one that documents the development of the teaching self in relation to students and society at large. Separated into four distinct sections, this work serves as an account of personal motivation to teach, getting to know students beyond the classroom walls, immersion in the community to situate educational work, and a comprehensive reflection upon teaching effectiveness and the evolution of the educating self. Development as a professional educator as stated in Teacher Performance Expectation (TPE) 6 demands continual introspection and …

Thoughts Of A First Year Teacher: Know Your Students, Caitlin King

CGU Theses & Dissertations

This Ethnographic Narrative is a research based look into the lives of socially disadvantaged students in a low-income area. It breaks down the assets and needs of each student individually and discusses how to better help them academically and socially based on their individual personalities and needs. The narrative also discusses the community in which these individual students live and attend school, it looks at research on the community to determine how each student is affected by the city that they live in. Finally the narrative concludes by looking at the teacher over the course of this past year and …

Putting Educational Reform Into Practice: The Impact Of The No Child Left Behind Act On Students, Teachers, And Schools, Timothy Song

CMC Senior Theses

This thesis seeks to investigate the effects of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) on U.S. student achievement and teacher effectiveness. By combining the results from various data sources, I am able to indicate the levels of student preparedness, school spending, and specific classroom practices. After an analysis of my results, I suggest that NCLB has found moderate success in increasing the level of math preparedness for younger students from historically disadvantaged backgrounds. On the other hand, the data also suggests that there have been no statistically significant gains in reading achievement after the implementation of NCLB. Additionally, spending …