Education Commons^™

Academic Relationships Between At-Risk High School Students And Teachers Within An Alternative School Setting: "It Is More Than Just Academics, It's Attitude", Daniel R. Galdeano

Theses and Dissertations

The first public schools in the United States were originally created to give all school-aged children the opportunity to gain access to a well-rounded education (Cable, Plucker & Spradlin, 2009). Options in public schools, preparation for high-stakes standardized tests, and graduation requirements are among the many educational reform policies that have been implemented in hopes of enabling students to reach their academic potential (Lange & Sletten, 2002). As a substitute to dropping out, alternative schools are among the leaders in the charge to try to curb the dropout problem that schools are facing. Alternative schools have existed since the civil …

A Journey To Understand Dual Language And The Bilingual World: An Autoethnography Of A Bilingual Program Director In An Urban District, Olivia Hernandez

Theses and Dissertations

This research represents a personalized account of the complexities, interpretations, and reflections on the life-long epistemological development of a bilingual program director currently implementing a dual language program in an urban school district. Using myself as a subject and a researcher in cultural, personal, and professional contexts provided the impetus for this self-study. Through the lens of a mother, daughter, sister, teacher, principal, and bilingual program director, I have chronicled and traced the epistemological conception of the assets that guide my advocacy in the academic realm of bilingual education. As an autoethnography, this study invites the reader to experience the …

The Gratitude Questionnaire And Mindful Attention Awareness Scale For Use With Latina/O College Students: A Confirmatory Factor Analysis, Dion B. Smith

Theses and Dissertations

Interventions based on positive psychology constructs have become increasingly popular over the past two decades, necessitating validation of instruments for use with underrepresented populations (Pawelski, 2016; Vela, Lerma, & Ikonomopoulos, 2016). This study reports an evaluation of the Mindful Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS; Brown & Ryan, 2003) and the Gratitude Questionnaire (GQ-6; McCullough, Emmons, & Tsang, 2002) for use with Latina/o college students. Sample sizes used in this study are N = 207 (99 women and 104 men; 4 did not identify) for the MAAS and N = 127 (84 women and 38 men; 5 did not identify) for the …

Making A Difference Through Parental Involvement: Techniques Teachers Can Utilize In Kindergarten Bilingual Classrooms, Monica I. Lopez

Theses and Dissertations

The importance of parental involvement in the education of all children is essential in schools. The schools that promote parental involvement prepare students for excellence in their education. Parental involvement, gives students opportunities and advantages by reinforcing and fortifying their learning. Different perspectives and viewpoints were examined, focusing on bilingual students and some Spanish speaking parents in a school in south Texas.

By finding what is causing low parental involvement and by listening to strategies used by educators that help increase parental involvement, this research provides answers on how to help parents get involved in their children’s education. Empowering parents …

Hispanic Bilingual Learners' Perceptions And Educational Experiences Of Spanish-Speaking In South Texas, Isela B. Stephens

Theses and Dissertations

The present study focuses on a subset of data obtained from a larger interdisciplinary project, Proyecto Posible, which investigates how sociocultural and instructional factors predict positive outcomes among Spanish- and English-speaking Hispanic bilingual learners. As one part of Proyecto Posible, interviewers asked learners to speak in their language of preference about their experiences in school and feelings developed during interactions with others, as bilinguals. This study examines the qualitative component on bilingual learners’ perceptions of their own language proficiency in English and Spanish, perceptions of language use across a broad range of contexts including school, home, and community, …

Global-To-Local-To-Global: A Model For Tutoring Esl Students In The Writing Center, David Aguilar

Theses and Dissertations

Since its inception, the writing center has always focused on traditional students, and today that tradition is continued in such a way that the overwhelming amount of research dedicated to writing center theory and practice addresses the concerns of those students. However, universities with unique student populations, such as the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley with its majority of Hispanic students, require novel practices within their writing centers. Moreover, much of the linguistic, social, and cultural factors of the region are not well documented and therefore are not addressed by the mainstream theory and practices of other universities. With …

Adult Hispanic Students' Attitudes Toward Writing In English In A U.S. Bilingual Community, Analynn Bustamante

Theses and Dissertations

Attitude is widely regarded as a key component for writing achievement. This study explores the relationship between students’ language dominance and their attitudes toward writing in English. Seventy-seven Hispanic adult students were recruited to participate in a survey. Four writing domains were tested: writing in general, writing in STEM courses, writing in humanities courses and writing in electronic communication. Participants’ attitudes toward four different writing domains were compared. Significant difference was found between attitudes toward general writing attitudes and attitudes toward writing STEM courses, as well as between general writing and writing in humanities courses. Additionally, participants were divided by …

The Effects Of Project-Based Learning On The Academic And Linguistic Achievement Of Emergent Bilingual Learners: A Mixed Methods Approach, Melinda Hardy

Theses and Dissertations

This mixed methods study examined the academic and linguistic impact of teaching emergent bilingual leaners through robotics project-based learning aligned to state standards. Two hundred ten middle school students attending a public charter school in the Rio Grande Valley in Texas participated in the study. Twenty percent of the students were emergent bilingual learners. Qualitative observation notes recorded students’ learning process as they completed an adapted Khan Academy robotics project. The students also completed pre- and post-assessments that quantitatively measured academic and linguistic gains. Emergent bilingual learners grew 20.1% points in academic content and 28.6% points in language development (p …