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Full-Text Articles in Education

Siwi In An Itinerant Teaching Setting: Contextual Factors Impacting Instruction, Rachel Machelle Saulsburry Dec 2016

Siwi In An Itinerant Teaching Setting: Contextual Factors Impacting Instruction, Rachel Machelle Saulsburry

Doctoral Dissertations

In the last 40 years, there has been a shift in where deaf and hard-of-hearing (d/hh) students have been educated (Foster & Cue, 2009), with a majority of d/hh students now spending at least part of their school day in the general education classroom instead of residential or day-schools for the deaf. Many of these students receive specialized support from an itinerant teacher. D/hh children have unique language needs due to their access (or lack thereof) to natural language for acquisition purposes. Insufficient access to language, ASL or English, may be due to: delays in identification and/or amplification, auditory input …


Multimodal Assessment In Action: What We Really Value In New Media Texts, Kathleen M. Baldwin Nov 2016

Multimodal Assessment In Action: What We Really Value In New Media Texts, Kathleen M. Baldwin

Doctoral Dissertations

As the Framework for Success in Postsecondary Writing illustrates, writing teachers at all educational levels can no longer ignore multimodality and the challenges that come with incorporating multimodal writing—texts composed using a combination of sound, images, video, etc.—into the classroom (NCTE, Framework). A chief struggle most writing teachers face is how to evaluate the multimodal texts their students produce, texts that are inherently diverse. In answer to the calls of scholars such as Yancey, Herrington, and Moran for research exploring multimodal assessment in situated classroom practice, my dissertation examines what K-16 writing teachers are and should be valuing in …


Contemplative Practices And Learning: A Holistic Approach To Education In Bhutan, Yang Gyeltshen Nov 2016

Contemplative Practices And Learning: A Holistic Approach To Education In Bhutan, Yang Gyeltshen

Doctoral Dissertations

This study examines the comments, behavior, and products of young student monks, who are exposed to an integrated curriculum of contemplative practices and secular lessons, about whether and how they bring their social-emotional learning from the contemplative practices to bear when learning secular functional skills and knowledge. At the beginning of my self-study, I hypothesized that an integrated curriculum of secular learning combined with contemplative practices would result in deeper learning, based on the research and literature on the connection between affective and cognitive learning. My findings support and do not negate previous research that an integrated curriculum, integrating contemplative …


Young Children Positioned As Storytellers In The Classroom: An Examination Of Teacher-Child Interactions And The Storytelling Event, Peggy L. Martalock Nov 2016

Young Children Positioned As Storytellers In The Classroom: An Examination Of Teacher-Child Interactions And The Storytelling Event, Peggy L. Martalock

Doctoral Dissertations

ABSTRACT YOUNG CHILDREN POSITIONED AS STORYTELLERS IN THE CLASSROOM: AN EXAMINATION OF TEACHER-CHILD INTERACTIONS AND THE STORYTELLING EVENT SEPTEMBER 2016 PEGGY MARTALOCK, B.A., UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN MADISON M.A. UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN LACROSSE Ed.D., UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS AMHERST Directed by: Professor Claire E. Hamilton Responsive, well-attuned, sensitive, dynamic, and individual interactions between teachers and children in early childhood classrooms support language and literacy development. This study looks at the nature and qualities of teacher – child interactions during Vivian Paley’s storytelling approach when implemented as a curricular activity. This is a microethnographic study conducted from a socio-cultural theoretical framework of two …


Shared Focus/Collective Responsibility: The Lived Experience Of Educators As Members Of A Data Team In A Connecticut Public High School, Abbie-Jean M. Lareau Nov 2016

Shared Focus/Collective Responsibility: The Lived Experience Of Educators As Members Of A Data Team In A Connecticut Public High School, Abbie-Jean M. Lareau

Doctoral Dissertations

ABSTRACT SHARED FOCUS/COLLECTIVE RESPONSIBILITY: THE LIVED EXPERIENCE OF EDUCATORS AS MEMBERS OF A DATA TEAM IN A CONNECTICUT PUBLIC HIGH SCHOOL This study explores the experiences of five high school English Teachers in a Connecticut public school acting as an Instructional Data Team as prescribed by the Connecticut Accountability for Learning (CALI) model. Data Teams are teams of educators that participate in collaborative, structured, scheduled meetings, which focus on the effectiveness of teaching as determined by student achievement. Data Teams adhere to continuous improvement cycles, analyze trends, and determine strategies to facilitate analysis that results in action. Data Teams can …


Synergy Between Digital And Traditional Literacy Practices: A Framework For Building A Reading Culture In A Secondary School, Nina Kositsky Nov 2016

Synergy Between Digital And Traditional Literacy Practices: A Framework For Building A Reading Culture In A Secondary School, Nina Kositsky

Doctoral Dissertations

Integration of digital technologies into the English classroom requires that we rethink pedagogical frameworks within which education occurs. This study examines traditional and digital literacy practices in a high school that committed itself to building a strong reading culture among its students as it digitized its library collection. Through a series of in-depth, phenomenologically based interviews and classroom observations, the researcher focused on identifying factors that foster an interest in literary reading as a personally meaningful literacy experience among 21st century adolescents and explored the following questions: What kind of teaching practices promote this interest? What kind of social environments …


Assessing The Impact Of Picture Books In Primary Grades Mathematics Instruction, Jessica Stone Aug 2016

Assessing The Impact Of Picture Books In Primary Grades Mathematics Instruction, Jessica Stone

Doctoral Dissertations

This study documents an educational field experiment evaluating the effects of picture books on primary students’ mathematical achievement and their dispositions towards mathematics. The study involved 136 primary grade students from one elementary school in the southeastern region of the United States. The student population had an overrepresentation of students from minority backgrounds (91%), low socioeconomic status (93%) and English Language Learners (47%). During the 18-week treatment period, teacher participants from the treatment group received bi-weekly collaborative professional development regarding the use of picture books in mathematics instruction. The teachers in the control group followed their district’s mathematics curriculum.

To …


Developing And Implementing A Lgbt Family Studies Course: A Pre-Post Evaluation, Kathryn Alexandra Conrad Aug 2016

Developing And Implementing A Lgbt Family Studies Course: A Pre-Post Evaluation, Kathryn Alexandra Conrad

Doctoral Dissertations

This study explores the pre- and post-course knowledge and attitudes regarding lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) individuals and families. An upper-level, Child and Family Studies undergraduate course, Modern Families, was constructed and piloted during the Spring 2016 semester to provide students with empirically-based information on contemporary families with a heavy emphasis on LGBT individuals and families. Participants (N = 19), who were enrolled in the course, participated in a series of open- and close-ended surveys at the beginning (Time 1 [T1]) and end (Time 2 [T2]) of the semester that assessed their knowledge and attitudes towards diverse …


The Student Experience Of Other Students, Brian Kelleher Sohn May 2016

The Student Experience Of Other Students, Brian Kelleher Sohn

Doctoral Dissertations

The literature on higher education classroom climate and its relationship to teaching and learning is dominated by studies and theorizing regarding the role of the instructor. But when instructors use learner-centered approaches and diffuse the role and authority of the teacher, students gain a higher level of influence in the learning experience of their peers. In this phenomenological case study of a unique graduate seminar, I interpreted the thematic structure of the student experience of other students (SEOS). Data sources included field notes, audio recordings of class sessions, weekly student post-class reflections, and individual and focus group interviews with students. …


The Use Of Outdoor Teaching Resources By Multidisciplinary University Faculty And Instructors At The University Of Tennessee: A Model For Establishing And Maintaining The Campus Landscape As A Significant And Dynamic Outdoor Classroom, Laboratory, And Therapy Center, Andrew J. Pulte May 2016

The Use Of Outdoor Teaching Resources By Multidisciplinary University Faculty And Instructors At The University Of Tennessee: A Model For Establishing And Maintaining The Campus Landscape As A Significant And Dynamic Outdoor Classroom, Laboratory, And Therapy Center, Andrew J. Pulte

Doctoral Dissertations

Research has shown that plants and the landscapes around us impact our lives. Plants have been shown to reduce anxiety and blood pressure, and to have mentally restorative and psychological benefits. These benefits can include but are not limited to improving our ability to cope with stress and improving our ability to focus and concentrate. During the formative years of higher education, the physical grounds of our campuses have the potential to provide these restorative benefits. Understanding how these landscapes are maintained can provide useful information for their improvement. In regards to campus grounds maintenance, select peer institutions of the …


Fifth Graders' Reading Choices, Janelle Dugger Bouknight May 2016

Fifth Graders' Reading Choices, Janelle Dugger Bouknight

Doctoral Dissertations

This study sought to determine whether students were capable of selecting appropriately leveled text for independent reading and whether students read those books once they were selected. A sample size of 155 students from a metropolitan area of the southeastern United States was studied. During the first interview, the researcher collected data concerning how the student selected the book. The student was then allowed to take the book home. A follow-up interview consisted of having the student read a pre-selected portion of the text and was followed by three comprehension questions. Researcher compared the readability level as determined by Lexile …


Higher Education Leadership And Communication Apprehension Reduction Efficacy, Shane Puckett Apr 2016

Higher Education Leadership And Communication Apprehension Reduction Efficacy, Shane Puckett

Doctoral Dissertations

Universities use public speaking courses to reduce the communication apprehension among the student population of the institution. Previous research connects lower communication apprehension to higher university retention rate and higher student success rates. However, a gap in current research does not explain if communication apprehension reduction is as significant when a student enrolls in a public speaking course taught online as opposed to a public speaking course taught in a traditional face-to-face manner. The purpose of this study was to explore the efficacy of systematic desensitization as it is used in public speaking courses online. This study set-out to answer …


The Effect Of A District-Wide Literacy Initiative On English/ Language Arts Standardized Test Scores, Sheri R. Robken Apr 2016

The Effect Of A District-Wide Literacy Initiative On English/ Language Arts Standardized Test Scores, Sheri R. Robken

Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of a District-Wide Literacy initiative that implemented the 18 literacy strategies and Silent Sustained Reading activities incorporated in the 2008 Revised Louisiana Comprehensive Curriculum on English/Language Arts standardized test scores. Standardized test scores were obtained for seventh and eighth grade students from a control group (n=204, 2006-2008 tests administrations) and an experimental group (n=185, 2008-2010 test administrations). An Analysis of Variance was used to determine significance (p