Education Commons^™

Examining The Impact Of One-To-One Digital Technology Integration On Student Engagement And Academic Achievement In Elementary Education, Mark Loeffler

Education | Master's Theses

Advances in computer technology have rapidly changed the face of elementary education as we know it. These changes were exacerbated in 2020, when elementary education was forced into Emergency Remote Teaching due to the Covid 19 pandemic, and students across the globe were attending and participating in school using only computers. These developments in computers and learning technology have provided countless benefits for educators, however these changes have continued to progress at such a rapid pace, that parents, educators, and school administrators have struggled to keep up (van de Werfhorst, Kessenich, Geven, 2022).

The purpose of this thesis was to …

Safeguarding Learning Before, During, And After Emergency Remote Teaching, Carol Ann Paul, Lisa Reason

Michigan Reading Journal

This qualitative study explores 25 elementary educators’ experiences after Emergency Remote Teaching (ERT) and examines the role of technology and face-to-face (f2f) interactions in the literacy classroom. Teachers in the study found substantial learning lags and extreme difficulty getting students reacclimated back into the classroom postpandemic. While they found technology to be adequate for differentiation and instant feedback, they noted the importance of f2f interaction for building relationships, social and emotional learning (SEL), reading, language, and fine motor skills. Aligned with Duke and Cartwright’s (2021) Active View of Reading Model, the study’s results advocate integrating SEL and literacy instruction, along …

The Effects Of High-Leverage Practices On Teaching Candidates Math Self-Efficacy, Christine Quisley

Dissertations, Theses, and Projects

The start of each school year should be one of excitement and joy for learning. However, year to year, there is one subject that elementary students and their teachers dread: math. This study focused on collecting data from teaching candidates on their math self-efficacy beliefs and the perceived competence in their ability to implement three specific high-leverage practices (HLPs) during student teaching.

This qualitative case study explores the experiences of teaching candidates enrolled in a university teacher preparation program. Within previous method courses, content focused on the planning, instruction, and assessment of high-leverage practices. The overarching question of this study …

Music Isn’T Just A Special: Amplifying Music's Power In Fostering Social-Emotional Skills In Students, Angelina Davis

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

For this Capstone Project, the researcher investigated how Dream Academy and Little Foot Elementary educators view music's impacts on social-emotional learning and what they thought could be done to improve it. Based on an analysis of the data and the relevant research literature, the researcher used what they have learned to formulate an action that responds to the impact of music on social-emotional learning in a way that inspires, informs, or involves a particular audience. This is an important issue for students and teachers because music education allows educators to teach social-emotional skills. It is argued that music fosters social-emotional …

Demystifying Artificial Intelligence (Ai) For Early Childhood And Elementary Education: A Case Study Of Perceptions Of Ai Of State Of Missouri Educators, Kathryn Arnone, James Hutson, Karen Woodruff

Faculty Scholarship

Artificial intelligence (AI) and its impact on society have received a great deal of attention in the past five years since the first Stanford AI100 report. AI already globally impacts individuals in critical and personal ways, and many industries will continue to experience disruptions as the full algorithmic effects are understood. However, with regard to education, adopting in disciplines remains limited largely to Computer Science and Information Technology in postsecondary education. Recent advances with technology are especially promising for their potential to create and scale personalized learning for students, to optimize strategies for learning outcomes, and to increase access to …

Phenomenological Study On Teacher Perceptions Of Tier 1 And The Adult Learner's Application Of The Knowledge, Michelle M. Stapp

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this transcendental phenomenological study was to examine teachers' experiences of implementing professional development into Tier 1 instruction at three elementary schools in North Central Texas. Participating teachers had at least three years of experience in grades Pre-Kindergarten through fifth. The leading theory which guided this study was the theory of andragogy by Knowles. Moreover, when teachers had an opportunity to self-reflect and understand how the learned strategies would improve student academic success, the implementation were heightened. The problem with Tier 1 professional development was that teachers were not involved in planning for the instructional strategies, which had …

Comparing Time Allocation For Teaching Science As Inquiry In Two Educator Preparation Science Methods Courses, Lori A. Dira

Faculty Journal Articles

How much time an institution allocates to content can indicate its overall importance and intended value to the educator preparation program. For decades there have been calls to integrate more authentic science inquiry experiences into not only undergraduate elementary science courses, but into all elementary educator preparation courses. Many elementary educators do not receive training on effective methods for teaching science, they will not feel comfortable and will likely have low self-efficacy. This study investigated the amount of time allocated to teaching science as inquiry and the knowledge participants had prior to and after taking an elementary teaching science methods …

Principals’ Perceptions Of School Sponsored Field Trips, Melissa Suzanne Giannantonio

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The purpose of this phenomenological study is to explore the views, attitudes, and ideas that school principals have on school-sponsored field trips. As society continues to change it is increasingly necessary to contemplate the growing significance of field trip facilities’ educational roles and garner “information about the audiences they serve” (Anderson et al., 2015, p. vii). Additionally, the past decade has seen a decline in the number of field trips taken by schools, and in 2020, field trips came to a complete halt due to COVID-19 (Center for Disease Control (CDC), 2020; Mathews, 2014; Mehta, 2008; Plummer, 2014; Reeves & …

The Utilization Of Recorded Read Alouds By Teachers In Kindergarten Through Sixth Grade, Kira Hart

Curriculum and Instruction Undergraduate Honors Theses

In March of 2020, schools in the United States turned to virtual instruction due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Recorded read alouds flooded the internet during this time (Shedrow & Stoetzel, 2021). Now that school is back in person, the internet remains full of these recorded read alouds. The purpose of this study is to examine the utilization of recorded read alouds as an instructional practice by kindergarten through sixth grade teachers within in-person classrooms. This study also determines whether the use of a recorded read aloud by teachers has changed following COVID-19 and the purposes recorded read alouds serve. Research …

Classroom Learning For English Language Learners In Elementary Schools Of West Virginia, Wenjuan Mo

Graduate Student Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Investigación, Educación Integral E Innovación En Matemáticas Y Ciencias Exactas Para El Desarrollo, Bruce G. Bukiet, Cristo Leon, James Lipuma, Mossella L. Martínez Martínez, Eric S. Niño Reyes, Edson A. Torres López, Lilián A. Reynosa Martínez, Jorge O. Moreno Treviño, Adriana Camacho Gómez

STEM for Success Resources

Este libro electrónico (e-book) contiene la colección de los trabajos de investigación presentados en el área de matemáticas y ciencias exactas en el Congreso Internacional de Investigación Academia Journals Monterrey, Investigación, Educación Integral e Innovación para el Desarrollo, que fuera organizado los días 13 y 14 de marzo de 2023 por Academia Journals en colaboración con el Colegio de Educación Profesional Técnica de Nuevo León (CONALEP NL).

Challenge-Based Learning & Steam Curriculum, Diana Lockwood

The STEAM Journal

STEAM education is being integrated into elementary schools as a way to engage more students in creativity, hands-on learning, and problem-based learning also referred to as Challenge-Based-Learning (CBL). This article focuses on elementary educators’ curriculum design for STEAM and presenting students with open-ended questions phrased as a challenge as a way to raise student interest and achievement (DeJarnette, 2018; Hunter-Doniger, 2018). When students received challenges to solve, they felt more open to sharing their ideas since there was more than one potential right answer (DeJarnette, 2018; Drake, 2012). When implementing CBL, teachers act as facilitators using a constructivist approach as …

Manifestation Determination Review Procedures: Are District Guidelines Followed And Are The Expressive And Receptive Language Skills Of The Student Considered?, Joan Turner

2023 Projects

This action research pilot study’s purpose was to investigate exclusionary discipline in schools for students with dis/abilities and Manifestation Determination Review (MDR) practices. The researcher created a protocol to answer the following research questions:

1) If I review 2 manifestation determination meeting documents using an evaluative tool based on district standards, in what ways, if any, will I find evidence that expressive and receptive language of the student were considered?

2) If I review 2 manifestation determination meeting documents using an evaluative tool based on district standards, in what ways, if any, will I see how district guidelines were followed …

The Benefits Of Dual Immersion Programs On Elementary School Students, Allison E. Williams

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

This capstone aims to share the benefits of Dual Immersion Programs at the Elementary school years. Understanding what a Dual Immersion Program is and knowing that there are different models within the program allow for parents to select which program is best suited for their students. A key point in clarification is that a Dual Immersion program does not aim to replace an English, or standard, education program, but add a target language to enhance the learning of the students. This study looks at the short- and long-term academic and social benefits students can gain from kindergarten through fifth grade …

Why Arts Education, At All?: An A/R/Tographic Inquiry, Darshana Devarajan, Brittany M. Brewer, Karenanna Boyle Creps, Reyila Hadeer

Northwest Journal of Teacher Education

In the wake of curricular epistemicide, the authors draw your attention towards the theoretical and practical constraints created around arts education. As a/r/tographers (artists, researchers, and teachers), we argue that our ways of knowing and creating in the space of curriculum and instruction are dynamic ways to think about and through curricular epistemicide. In foregrounding our own experiences of “(un)becoming through the cracks”, when we are faced with restrictive ways of knowing in a Department of Teacher Education, we put forth a question through our arts-based practices of knowing: why arts education, at all?

Engaging Children With Animals Increases Their Awareness Of Their Footprint On Earth, Brett Foster

Honors Theses

Teachers should reserve time in their classrooms to connect curriculum to animals and environmental topics. Connecting core subjects like writing, reading, or even math to animals builds student investment in learning as they can connect the topics of animals to their lives. Animals are all around us and are a topic that students naturally spend a lot of time with and can easily identify in the world around them. There are several benefits of incorporating animals into the curriculum, including an increased sense of empathy, an awareness of their environmental impact, and an investment in their community.

I have focused …

Spanish Cultural Club, Carolina Barraza, Katya Reason

Honors Expanded Learning Clubs

The goal is for students to learn essential Spanish words and phrases and learn more about the culture of Latin America.

Black History In The Early Childhood And Elementary Classrooms: Teacher Beliefs And Practices, Shannon Mccormack

Honors Program Theses and Projects

Educators across the United States have struggled with meaningfully yet appropriately addressing race within History and Social Studies lessons at the Early Childhood and Elementary level. Previous research has revealed the importance of these conversations and the benefits that learning accurate history has for students of all racial backgrounds. The literature has also revealed the discomfort and apprehensiveness that educators may feel while confronting and teaching about our nation’s complex and often grim history. The purpose of this research was to analyze teachers’ beliefs and comfortability regarding addressing race in the classroom and how that translates to their teaching practices. …

Elementary Teachers’ Use Of 1:1 Tablets In Lesson Planning And Presentation On A Western Pacific Island, Sinton Soalablai, Andrea M. Wilson, Beate Baltes

Journal of Educational Research and Practice

The Ministry of Education on a Western Pacific island invested in an expensive 1:1 tablet program providing elementary teachers and students with a tablet but had not determined if the program produced desired positive changes in the teachers’ instructional practices of lesson planning and lesson presentation. Guided by experiential learning theory, this causal–comparative study’s purpose was to determine if the 1:1 tablet program resulted in changes in elementary teachers’ use of technology in their lesson planning and lesson presentation practices. We analyzed pre and postimplementation lesson planning and lesson presentation data, collected from 63 elementary teachers, using repeated measures t …

Music As A Form Of Therapy In The K-4 Special Education Classroom: A Phenomenological Study, Roger Hattaway

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this phenomenological study was to identify and describe the perceptions of elementary K-4th grade teachers on the effects of music therapy as it pertains to academics and behavioral incidents in the special education classroom (Gooding, 2010).

Methodology: This qualitative study used a phenomenological design to ascertain the perception of the teachers on the impact of music therapy regarding academics of students in the K-4 grade special education classroom. The data were collected using the descriptive narrative to ascertain the perception of the changes in academics and behavior gathered from the interview questions.

Findings: Analysis of the …

The Role Of Science In Elementary Education, Emily Moran

Education | Master's Theses

The role of Science in education has evolved over the years. Although it is currently considered an important subject, there is a gap in knowledge involving the level at which Science is incorporated in elementary education and how teachers view the subject. Since the introduction of the Next Generation Science Standards, there has been a shift towards creating more equitable learning opportunities that include inquiry based and three-dimensional instruction (Britton, Iveland, Schneider, Tyler, & Valcarcel, 2016). Recent studies show that many teachers struggle to incorporate science standards and concepts and lack confidence in cohesively integrating science into their lessons (Nadelson …

A Program Evaluation Of Teacher And Administrator Perceptions Of Technology Integration At The K-6 Level In The Seneca Valley School District And The Impact Of Covid-19, Bria Koch

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Education and learning were upended in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Approximately 1.6 billion learners in more than 190 countries were impacted by the pandemic with 90 percent of countries adopting digital or remote learning policies (United States Department of Education, 2021). This program evaluation of teachers’ and administrators’ perspectives examined how well technology integration was taking place in K-6 grade classrooms in the Seneca Valley School District. Due to the interruption of traditional learning because of the COVID-19 pandemic, it was an opportune time to examine both teachers’ and administrators’ perceptions about the district’s level of success at …

Exploring Perceptions Of Math Instructional Practices In Preparation For High-Stakes Testing, Rachel M. Green

Dissertations

In all things, I give my God glory; He is my strength and comforter. To my mom, thank you for giving me life and choosing to love me relentlessly. You are, to me, an inspiration and a warrior for Christ. To my mother-in-law, my first classroom teacher, completing this project could not have happened without you. Its success is just as much yours as it is mine. Thank you for giving me my best friend and biggest supporter. To my Joe, the wind beneath my wings and protector of my heart, you have been with me through every season of …

Boys Of Color And Literacy In The Elementary Classroom, Alexandria Sledge-Tollerson

Honors College Theses

It is widely known that there is a gap in literacy scores between boys of color and their white peers. There are many factors such as lack of adequate resources, representation in text, societal and cultural influences, and the school to prison pipeline that create this achievement gap. These factors impact boys of color and their literacy as they navigate in the elementary classroom. A case study was conducted to see what current literacy teachers are doing in elementary classrooms to close this gap. This research will inform both novice and experienced literacy teachers on strategies and methods they can …

Oral History: A Tool For The Elementary And Middle Classroom, Jessica Keiser

Senior Honors Theses

Modern historical instruction requires educators to cover broad expanses of history and prepare students for standardized testing. In the push to meet state standards and cover the vast curriculum in short periods of time, many educators have begun to teach to the textbook. Much to the detriment of students, this educational practice has favored periodization and content quantity over the development of crucial historical skills. Rather than adhering to popular education trends, teachers can consider implementing oral history projects within their elementary and middle school classrooms. Oral history is a methodology that employs first-hand accounts to teach about key historical …

The Prevalence Of Writing In Elementary Teacher Preparation Courses In The Pacific Northwest, Chelsea Mabie

Theses and Dissertations

Writing continues to be an underserved content area within English Language Arts instruction in elementary school classrooms. This sequential mixed-methods study was designed to develop a current state of practice for writing pedagogical training within the Pacific Northwest. Course descriptions were analyzed for specific references to writing, or terms inclusive of writing, from five teacher preparation programs in Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia. Grounded in expertise theory, the implications for this work are aimed at schools of education as well as teacher licensing bodies reflecting on if their training practices are supportive in developing a solid foundation for preservice educators …

Teacher Perceptions Of Technology-Enhanced, Collaborative, Project-Based Learning On Students In Mixed-Ability Classrooms, Amy Lauren Pierson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The skill of collaboration is fundamental for every student as a future participant of a global society. Students with learning disabilities feel excluded amongst peers in a traditional classroom setting, specifically elementary students with learning disabilities in the area of collaboration. The overall purpose of this basic qualitative study was to explore elementary teacher perceptions of how students in mixed-ability classrooms collaborate using technology in a project-based learning (PBL) environment. Vygotsky’s social constructivism theory informed this study by providing a framework for learning in social groups, specifically collaborative learning practices in a PBL environment. The research question in this study …

Fidelity Of Implementation Of A Balanced Literacy Program In The Elementary Classroom, Shalonda Young

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractThe local problem is that literacy in the target school district continues to rank below the state average and the fidelity of implementation (FOI) of balanced literacy (BL) has not been addressed since BL was initiated in 2014 to address student literacy achievement. Teachers reported limited professional development (PD) and lack of motivation to implement BL as designed. The purpose of this basic qualitative research study was to explore elementary English language arts (ELA) teachers’ and support staff personnel’s perceptions of the FOI of a BL program in the target school district ELA classrooms to determine in what ways the …

A Survey Of Elementary Educators' Self-Efficacy Related To Stem Education, Elizabeth Mckenzie Johnson

Theses and Dissertations--Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Education

While the call for STEM and engineering design has increased since the release of the Next Generation Science Standards, the implementation of STEM in elementary grades has been slow. A variety of factors play a role in why educators, schools, or districts make the informed decisions they do regarding curriculum and instruction. Identifying strengths and challenges elementary educators face in implementing STEM into the curriculum can guide schools and districts in creating supports for increasing STEM in the elementary grades. This study sought to create and test a survey instrument for use with elementary educators in a large urban district …

Controversy In The Early Elementary Classroom: A Case Study Of The 2020 Presidential Election, Zachary W. Stumbo

Doctoral Dissertations

This single case study with embedded units of analysis examines how three early elementary teachers in Kentucky public schools taught the 2020 Presidential Election in grades one, two, and three using Scholastic News resources as instructional tools. The research questions focused on how teachers used the materials and the pedagogical strengths of the instructional resources. The three research participants were purposefully selected as early-career, mid-career, and late-career teacher leaders in grades one, two, and three. Data collected included semi-structured interviews, qualitative data analysis of the Scholastic News instructional materials, multi-level policies, and news reports concerning the election. The analysis focused …