Education Commons^™

Incorporating The Critical Music Framework: An Autoethnographic Reflection, Tommy Ender

Faculty Publications

I articulate an autoethnographic narrative of using different songs to counter dominant interpretations of gender, class, immigration, slavery, and education in the secondary social studies classroom. Framing it as the Critical Music Framework, the practice of using music addressing social issues and historical representations of women and people of color provided students with reflective learning opportunities. The resulting conversations illustrate the importance of music not just on the personal but also the academic aspects of individuals.

Sustainable Science And Education In The Neoliberal Ecoprison, Peter C. Little

Faculty Publications

As part of the general ‘greening’ of prisons in the last decade of neoliberalization and the formation of institutionalized programs to provide science and environmental education opportunities for the incarcerated, the Sustainability in Prisons Project (SPP), a partnership between Evergreen State College and the Washington State Department of Corrections, has become the most vibrant partnership in the US to mesh the cultures and institutions of environmental science and corrections. Drawing attention to the SPP’s anchoring mission, which is ‘to bring science and nature into prisons,’ this article looks at environmental science education in the contemporary prison in light of recent …

Working-Class Students And Historical Inquiry, Leslie Schuster

Faculty Publications

For the past twelve years, I have been teaching a lower division introductory historical methods course that uses active learning to introduce students to the issues and practices of historical methods, the "how to" of historical inquiry, research and writing. While there are many models for such a course, including the one described by Jeffrey Merrick in the February 2006 issue of this journal, the design of such a course at my institution requires consideration of an often-overlooked dimension. The student body at Rhode Island College (RIC) is primarily working class, mirroring a significant transformation in the traditional college student …

Sex Education In Our Schools, Kelley Conti

Honors Projects

This research project involved interviewing 42 parents with children between the ages of 12 to 18-years-old regarding their views and opinions on sex education for today’s youth. All 42 parents agreed they wanted a more informative sex education for their children than what they were exposed to as children. This included those with formal sex education as well as those that learned from peers, siblings or in their neighborhood. Another aspect all parents agreed on was the need for a more comprehensive sex education. Thirty-eight parents thought abstinence should be included as an option in sex education classes but not …

The Relation Between Speech And Reading, Erin St. Jacques

Honors Projects

An analysis is made of the connection between speech and reading, and language and reading, and how both are related to a Speech-Language Pathologist's job in a school setting, working with struggling readers. Research about the process of learning how to read and how and SLP can be brought in at different stages is examined. This research paper looks at how a child learns to read; programs were executed involving young readers with reading disabilities. It also examines the different stages of learning to read and how an SLP can try to hep. The tactics were examined more closely as …

The Effect Of Positive Behavioral Intervention And Supports (Pbts) On Elementary School Student Academic Performance And Behaviors, Michelle Leblanc

Honors Projects

Positive Behavioral Intervention and Supports (PBIS) is a school-wide management program designed to improve student academic performance by providing a positive behavioral environment. Research was conducted to determine if there were any direct correlation between proper and consistent implementation of the PBIS framework and an overall increased student achievement on assessments such as the New England Common Assessment Program (NECAP). Test results were examined and 12 interviews were conducted with principals, teachers, and PBIS coordinators from six different Rhode Island public schools. The results demonstrated that a majority of the schools have improved over the last few years on the …

Apartheid Transition: Assessing A Black Township Education In South Africa's Disparate Social System, Adrienne Gerard

Honors Projects

An analysis of township education in South Africa and why outcomes are still so poor despite varied attempts y the post-Apartheid government to elevate these previously disadvantaged schools to the level of the country's primarily white schools. This paper looks into financial reason as well as policies, teacher qualification and domestic culture.

How To Make After School Programs Work: A Study Of Successful After School Programs In Five States, Caitlin Laboissonniere

Honors Projects

Explores the factors that make a high school after school program successful. Eight programs from five states participated by completing a voluntary survey. Half of the programs are categorized as being a success, with results indicating that the types of activities offered to teens is the most important aspect in ensuring a successful after school program.

The Face Of Society, Roger D. Clark, Alex Nunes

Faculty Publications

We have updated Ferree and Hall's (1990) study of the way gender and race are constructed through pictures in introductory sociology textbooks. Ferree and Hall looked at 33 textbooks published between 1982 and 1988. We replicated their study by examining 3,085 illustrations in a sample of 27 textbooks, most of which were published between 2002 and 2006. We found important areas of progress in the presentation of both gender and race as well as significant areas of stasis. The face of society we found depicted in contemporary textbooks was distinctly less likely to be that of a white man, very …

Assessment Governance, Richard R. Weiner, Karl P. Benziger

Faculty Publications

There has emerged a web of exogenous forces emanating from national and regional accreditation associations, particularly a satellite professional association involved in teacher preparation called the National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS). The reality of this web contradicts the implicit idealist sentiment in John Ishiyama’s report on the “Assessment of Student Outcomes’ meetings at the 2004 TLC where he describes “assessment as a voluntarist/bootstrapping “bottom up” effort of individual faculty members. [PS.27: 3, July 2004, 483-85.] Faculty are increasingly bombarded by outside agencies for standards inventory matrices, evaluation rubrics, and course maps.

Balancing Yin And Yang, Roger D. Clark, Angela Lang

Faculty Publications

The first three-quarters of the semester flew by. We learned about quantitative data analysis and I loved it. I really enjoyed the numerical manipulations and seeing how it all related to people. Everything was there in front of me. Not too much imagination on my part was really needed. Then it all ended. Professor Clark introduced qualitative methods and the anxiety began. I soon realized I had to reinvent my creative side, which is something that as an undergraduate I am not required to do very often. I was nervous that I would discover that I was not creative at …

If You Know The Way To San Jose It Helps, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"Not uncommon in this country is the manner in which a location is described: "Far from the center of California, as the name implies, El Centro is the seat of the Imperial County, DOWN AT THE RIGHT HAND, BOTTOM CORNER OF THE STATE AS YOU LOOK AT A MAP..." Apparently, for this local columnist describing the poorest county of the 58 in our most populous state, stating that it is located in the southeast corner of the state is something that was never learned. Oh yes, it should also be made clear that San Bernadino County is the largest in …

Rhode Island Teachers Ahead Of The Crowd, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"For teachers this is the time to enjoy the summer break to travel, stay home with their own children or just take a vacation. But for the majority there is something called professional development. Summer is the usual time when teachers go back to school to hone their skills, learn more about their subject area, work for advanced degrees or pick up some new practices for that high tech equipment sitting in the classroom. Like may other professionals who want to advance their careers and keep up with new ideas and practices, teachers also take courses during the school year …

Retaining And Revitalizing Teachers, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"Bankers do it; corporate members do it; even non-refundable profits do it, so why in the world can't teachers do it? What I'm talking about is the opportunity to get away from the job for a short period to have some free time, to contemplate, to talk with your colleagues, be pampered and to learn. This so-called retreat provides the opportunity to relax and reflect on your life and your work, to refresh yourself and to be recognized for the important work that you do. This is what they do for teachers in North Carolina, the only state to have …

There's Good News From The Nation's Classrooms, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"Last May at the finals of the National Geographic Bee held in Washington, DC, Alex Trebeck was getting concerned because he thought that he would be running out of questions for the ten finalists who came from throughout the country. Well, he did have enough, although it was close.

In the previous year it took just 80 questions to determine a winner of the Bee, an annual event sponsored by the National Geographic Society in which over five million kids nationwide from grades four through eight compete. In 1999, however, it took 140 questions before a winner was determined. In …

Excellence In Geography In The Schools, Chester Smolski, Anne K. Petry

Smolski Texts

"Most people know of the National Geographic Society through its well-know magazine, nine million of which are mailed out each month and most of which now reside in attics throughout the world.

"But what many do not realize is the $80 million effort over the past 12 years that the Geographic has made in the schools of the country to make our teachers an children better understand the world around them. This it has done throuh its support of the Geography Alliances established in every state, Canada, Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia."

Helping Teachers Help Students Enjoy Geography, Chester Smolski, Anne K. Petry

Smolski Texts

"The concern to improve the education of your young people, whether at the national, state or local levels, is manifesting itself in a variety of ways. One of these is the national program sponsored by the National Geographic Society.

Turned On Teachers Help Students Tune In To Geography, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"If you hear your youngster just home from school talking about some local issues related to transportation, land use, natural resources, air quality, water pollution, zoning, population growth or economic development, you can bet that she has been turned on by her geography teacher."

Teachers Make Marks In, Out Of Classroom, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"Doing field work on the Northern Fur Seals of Pribilof Islands in the Bering Sea off the coast of Alaska; laboring in the lab at the University of Texas; examining gender and geography at Trinity College in Hartford; finding out about China at Yale; doing surveys on tourism and sustainability at the University of Maine; studying with the National Geographic Society in Washington, D.C. and teaching and working with other teachers at Roger Williams University and Rhode Island College, 20 Teacher Consultants (TCs) of the Rhode Island Geography Education Alliance had themselves a busy and productive summer."

Is Geography In R.I. Going Down The Drain?, Ann K. Petry

Smolski Texts

"Global Village. World understanding. Political Alliances. Trade agreements. Global warming. Cultural differences. Population growth. Refugees and migration. Declining resources. Environmental degradation. It's a big world and it requires study to address these issues, but here in Rhode Island the one school that turns out the most teachers is dropping the subject that specifically speaks to all these problems--geography."

On Students, Standards, Employers And Jobs, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"The recent an first national census survey on hiring, training and management practices in business in this country statistically reaffirmed the complaints of business leaders made a decade ago--young people coming out of our schools are not ready nor qualified for the workplace."

Geographically, R.I. Teachers Are Among The Best, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"Isn't it time that we recognize the good teachers and good work being done in the schools of this state rather than constantly harping on problems with education and how our students don't measure up to those in other countries?"

Providence's Unending Quest For Cash, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"The mayor of Providence has a big problem. How can he balance a budget that addresses the needs of an increasingly large number of people, yet deal with a declining tax base that is less able to pay for theses extra services?"

Bringing Geography To Life!, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"When Gil Grosvenor, president of the National Geographic Society, called a meeting of Kit Salter and other geographers from California nearly a decade ago, he had no idea that the discussion would have a profound impact on the teaching of geography in the nation's schools."

Multinational Corporate-Investment And Womens' Participation In Higher-Education In Noncore Nations, Roger D. Clark

Faculty Publications

This article posits a theoretical connection between multinational corporate (MNC) investment and women's participation in higher education in noncore nations. It suggests that because MNC investment encourages a "breed-and-feed" ideology for women, the prejudicial hiring of men in high-status occupations, and the lack of state regulation of gender discrimination, its presence skews the demand for higher education away from women. Panel regression analyses of data from 66 noncore and 44 peripheral nations indicate considerable support for this position.

Attacking Geographic Illiteracy, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"It has been clearly demonstrated through numerous surveys that US residents are among the most geographically illiterate people in the world. Whether trying to locate our own country or the Soviet Union on a world map, we score among the lowest of the major industrial nations of the world in such a simple exercise. But the future looks brighter, both in the nation and in Rhode Island, thanks to the efforts of the National Geographic Society.

Our Place On The Map, Chester Smolski, Anne K. Petry

Smolski Texts

"National Geography Awareness Week (Nov. 11-17) will have special significance for the schools of Rhode Island. The National Geographic Society has just awarded a $1000 planning grant to the two of us, one of such seven awards granted this year, to begin the process by which all of our schools may again bring geography to its full importance in the curriculum."

Student Personality Traits And Values Across Generations, Thomas J. Lavin, Richard W. Prull

Faculty Publications

To assess possible generational differences in student personailty traits and values, an analysis was conducted of four samples of college freshman who had completed the Omnibus Personality Inventory (OPI) at intervals spanning 1969 through 1987. A linear increase in impulsivity during that period was the strongest of the observed shifts.

Wanted: Live-In Teachers, Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"Boston, Chicago, Philadelphia, Detroit and Cleveland all have it--a residency requirement--and so does Providence. Having to live in the city for which you work has been deemed to be an important measure in helping to bring people back into the city, and that was the reason it was included in the 1980 Home Rule Charter."

How To Keep Teachers In R.I., Chester Smolski

Smolski Texts

"Should Providence city employees be forced to live in the city? The Home Rule Charter, adopted five years ago, requires them to do so. The executive secretary of the Providence Teachers' Union states that this requirement should not apply to teachers. But, is dropping the residency requirement the answer to the problem of finding adequate numbers of substitute and full-time teachers?"