Education Commons^™

Evaluating And Improving The Quality Of Teacher’S Language Modeling In Early Childhood Classrooms, Lillian White Englund

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The relationship between pre-school teachers and the children in their classrooms directly influences the degree of success the children experience in school and in life. The emphasis on quality pre-K education in the U.S. has resulted in an increased need for highly qualified teachers who are capable of engaging in meaningful interactions with young children. An important component of high-level teacher-child interactions is the teacher's ability to model language for children as they acquire vocabulary and language context.

This mixed-methods study was designed to examine the effectiveness of a professional development intervention designed to improve the quality of language modeling …

Effects Of Social Story Interventions On Preschool Age Children With And Without Disabilities, Cori Michelle More

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

More children are receiving care outside of their home under the age of six (Childstats.gov, 2007). The quality of these programs has a direct impact on student’s readiness for school (Burchinal, Roberts, Nabors, & Bryant, 1996). Social readiness is the foundation for school readiness and academic achievement (Blair, 2002; Brigman, Lane, Lane, Lawrence, & Switzer, 1999; Raver, 2004). Acquisition of social skills plays a key role in preschool age children’s readiness for school, thus interventions that teach young children social skills are of importance. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of Social Story interventions on preschool …

Emergent Literacy Skills Of Young Children With Autism: A Comparison Of Teacher-Led And Computer-Assisted Instruction, Jason Christopher Travers

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Young children with autism often are identified as experiencing problems in language, social, and behavioral development. Current research typically focuses on these three areas with little attention paid to the academic learning of these children. Because of this, young children with autism often do not engage in typical early literacy experiences (e.g.., emergent literacy activities). This can result in these children being at risk for developing poor literacy skills. It is important that researchers begin to explore systematic literacy instruction for young children with autism to not only increase literacy learning, but also facilitate the inclusion of these children in …

A Comparison Of Special Education Teachers’ And Administrators’ Perceptions Of School Climate Factors Leading To Teacher Attrition, Jennifer C. Boeddeker

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This study examined (a) the difference between special education teachers’ and administrators’ perceptions of school climate factors that influence special education teacher attrition and (b) differences among the four school climate factors perceived by school personnel. School climate was measured in professional development, collaboration, working conditions, and leadership. Participants were 29 administrators and 62 special education teachers from a large metropolitan school district in the Southwest United States. A 52 item online questionnaire was used for data collection. Special education teachers perceived school climate factors as more influential in promoting teacher attrition than did administrators. When the four school climate …