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Full-Text Articles in Education

Paradise Under The Field House Lights: When Rituals And Spectacles Suppress Female Students’ Agency, Carolyn Fortuna Dec 2011

Paradise Under The Field House Lights: When Rituals And Spectacles Suppress Female Students’ Agency, Carolyn Fortuna

Networks: An Online Journal for Teacher Research

I am a teacher-researcher. Like many teachers, I design lesson plans, implement constructivist learning events in the classroom, and grade projects and papers. But I am also a qualitative researcher. I decided to remain in the classroom after obtaining my Ph. D. in education so that I could impact students in ways that I feel are beyond the reach of an administrator. My most important data collection device has always been my low-tech teacher journal. A teacher journal allows me to create an account of classroom life where dialogic discourse, offhand remarks, lesson outlines, administrative sessions, and student social conversations …


Teaching The Harry Potter Generation, Kerr Houston Dec 2011

Teaching The Harry Potter Generation, Kerr Houston

Networks: An Online Journal for Teacher Research

What I would like to offer here, then, is a brief rumination on some of the ways in which the seven Harry Potter novels and the ensuing eight films may have influenced a number of today’s college students. Clearly, this is hardly a rigorously designed or controlled research project, and it is not a report on a project executed in a classroom. Rather, it is an informal set of reflections on a group of texts that have enjoyed an exceptional popularity among an entire generation of students. Certainly, there should always be a place for focused research into pedagogy and …


Editorial Introduction, Catherine F. Compton-Lilly Dec 2011

Editorial Introduction, Catherine F. Compton-Lilly

Networks: An Online Journal for Teacher Research

The Fall 2011 Edition of Networks highlights a rich range of articles and thoughtful teachers’ voices. Of particular interest in this current edition are the reflections of two teachers working in very different contexts. Carolyn Fortuna is an independent scholar reflecting on her experiences working in a public high school. She explores gender construction for students in what might be considered a typical American high school. In particular she explores how the athletic field house, as well as other school spaces, becomes sites for displaying particular ways of being male or female and identifies the performances that are allowed, encouraged, …


Immigrant Students And Literacy: Reading, Writing, And Remembering., Patricia Eugenia Venegas Dec 2011

Immigrant Students And Literacy: Reading, Writing, And Remembering., Patricia Eugenia Venegas

Networks: An Online Journal for Teacher Research

Campano’s book offers a one-of-a-kind invitation for teachers to partake in action research as a fertile foundation for inquiry and for the development of new selves and new literacies. Through critical inquiry and interplay between reality and diversity in a “diaspora community” (p. 73). Campano’s work inspires the construction of flexible and collaborative new knowledge—new knowledge that is embedded in the experiences of teachers and students in and out of school, family histories, and students’ cultural identities. Campano’s fifth-grade immigrant students, all from in an urban California school, engage in a collaborative endeavor that provides a framework for new kinds …


Mind The Map: How Thinking Maps Affect Student Achievement, Dan Jacob Long, David Carlson Dec 2011

Mind The Map: How Thinking Maps Affect Student Achievement, Dan Jacob Long, David Carlson

Networks: An Online Journal for Teacher Research

This action research project, conducted in an 8th grade classroom by Daniel Long, investigated how Thinking Maps could be utilized by the students to broaden critical thinking skills and enhance their understanding of the content being presented. The research data was gathered through anonymous student surveys, instructor observation notes and a post-intervention assessment. Students were taught the function and proper construction of all eight Thinking Maps and were encouraged to utilize them on multiple occasions every day. The findings by Long indicated that when students constructed Thinking Maps, they were able to achieve greater understanding than those students who used …


Determinants Of Adoption Of Improved Maize Varieties And Chemical Fertilizers In Mozambique, Eunice Cavane, Cynthia Donavan Oct 2011

Determinants Of Adoption Of Improved Maize Varieties And Chemical Fertilizers In Mozambique, Eunice Cavane, Cynthia Donavan

Journal of International Agricultural and Extension Education

In Mozambique, adoption of improved maize seed and chemical fertilizers is still limited. This study assessed farmers’ attitudes towards hybrid maize SC513, Nitrogenous (N) Phosphorous (P) Potassium (K), (NPK 12-24-12) and urea fertilizers in highlands and lowlands of the Manica District. The study determined the influence of farmers’ characteristics, attitudes, sources of information, and agro-ecological conditions on adoption of these technologies during 1995 through 2005. A questionnaire was administered during April and May 2006 with a randomly selected sample of 293 households. In general, farmers held positive attitudes towards improved maize varieties and chemical fertilizers, but the strength of attitudes …


The Behavior Management Dilemma With Student Teachers: A Practical Perspective From The Field, Robert Wolfersberger Sep 2011

The Behavior Management Dilemma With Student Teachers: A Practical Perspective From The Field, Robert Wolfersberger

The Advocate

A significant contributor to student misbehavior is unskilled teacher behaviors. This article identifies some of these counterproductive teaching behaviors that unintentionally create a learning environment vulnerable to student misbehavior. Student teachers are in the process of developing their skills and if they are not equipped with a functional behavior management plan and the accompanying application skills, their students may become victims of inappropriate consequences. Skill in managing student behavior is an essential teacher tool. The author recommends a practical approach to behavior management for student teachers that gives proper focus and emphasis to this important and sensitive subject.


Asian-American Students And Academic Achievement Motivation, Anh Tran Sep 2011

Asian-American Students And Academic Achievement Motivation, Anh Tran

The Advocate

This article proposes a unified perspective on academic achievement motivation among Asian-American high achievers. It is contended that an integration of the achievement goal construct and the factors of ethnic identity is needed to provide an adequate answer to the question of how to motivate Asian-American students and hopefully other minority students in learning.


How Pre-Service Teachers' Beliefs And Assumptions About Diverse Students Change Through Their Reflections On A Study-Buddy Program, Deborah Sardo Brown, Fanni Liu Coward Sep 2011

How Pre-Service Teachers' Beliefs And Assumptions About Diverse Students Change Through Their Reflections On A Study-Buddy Program, Deborah Sardo Brown, Fanni Liu Coward

The Advocate

Fifth-three pre-service teachers participated in a study-buddy program and wrote reflective journal entries and a field experience paper in which they analyzed their study-buddy's learning dilemmas and proposed possible solutions. The pre-service teachers' writings were then analyzed for assumptions they made about their study-buddy. The results of the study documented the nature of pre-service teachers' assumptions about the diverse students they tutored and how these assumptions changed over time. In addition, this study illustrated how reflective assignments, in conjunction with participation in a study-buddy program, can serve to facilitate change in pre-service teachers' preconceived notions about diverse students.


My Quiz Is Better Or It Takes A Semester To Build A Quiz, Freddie Bowles Sep 2011

My Quiz Is Better Or It Takes A Semester To Build A Quiz, Freddie Bowles

The Advocate

Introduction: Learning by doing appeals to many teachers and students who enjoy the practical application of new knowledge. When learners are able to demonstrate the upper levels of Bloom's taxonomy - application, synthesis, evaluation - the students almost assuredly have demonstrated an "enduring understanding" of the content material.


Sensory Visualization: A Writing Strategy For Students, Carolyn R. Fehrenbach Sep 2011

Sensory Visualization: A Writing Strategy For Students, Carolyn R. Fehrenbach

The Advocate

This paper describes the use of a Sensory Visualization strategy to engage secondary pre-service teachers in a writing activity integrating current or historical events through the modality of the senses. Students write papers from the viewpoint of a person in an event after viewing a photograph or illustration of the event.


The Pathwise Classroom Orientation System: A Teacher Mentoring Model That Really Works, Kevin C. Costley, Timothy Leggett Sep 2011

The Pathwise Classroom Orientation System: A Teacher Mentoring Model That Really Works, Kevin C. Costley, Timothy Leggett

The Advocate

Mentoring beginning teachers in the United States is on the rise due to the alarming attrition rates of recent decades. There is a greater need to attract/retain teachers in suburban, urban and areas of poverty.


Table Of Contents And Editorial Information For Vol. 39, No. 1, Fall 2011, James L. Phelps Sep 2011

Table Of Contents And Editorial Information For Vol. 39, No. 1, Fall 2011, James L. Phelps

Educational Considerations

Table of contents and editorial information for Vol. 39, no. 1, Fall 2011 - Special Issue on Class Size and Student Achievement


A Practical Method Of Policy Analysis By Simulating Policy Options, James L. Phelps Sep 2011

A Practical Method Of Policy Analysis By Simulating Policy Options, James L. Phelps

Educational Considerations

This article focuses on a method of policy analysis that has evolved from the previous articles in this issue. The first section, “Toward a Theory of Educational Production,” identifies concepts from science and achievement production to be incorporated into this policy analysis method.


A Practical Method Of Policy Analysis By Estimating Effect Size, James L. Phelps Sep 2011

A Practical Method Of Policy Analysis By Estimating Effect Size, James L. Phelps

Educational Considerations

The previous articles on class size and other productivity research paint a complex and confusing picture of the relationship between policy variables and student achievement. Missing is a conceptual scheme capable of combining the seemingly unrelated research and dissimilar estimates of effect size into a unified structure for policy analysis and decision making. This article builds a rationale for a unifying structure and consistent method of estimating effect size.


Table Of Contents And Introductory Materials For Vl. 19, No.2, Fall 2011, Bruce Quantic Sep 2011

Table Of Contents And Introductory Materials For Vl. 19, No.2, Fall 2011, Bruce Quantic

The Advocate

This content includes the table of contents and editorial information, a message from president of ATE-E, and a message from the editor for vol. 19, no.2 (Fall 2011) for The Advocate.


Another Look At The Glass And Smith Study On Class Size, James L. Phelps Sep 2011

Another Look At The Glass And Smith Study On Class Size, James L. Phelps

Educational Considerations

One of the most influential studies affecting educational policy is Glass and Smith’s 1978 study, Meta-Analysis of Research on the Relationship of Class Size and Achievement. Since its publication, educational policymakers have referenced it frequently as the justification for reducing class size.


Educational Considerations, Vol. 39(1) Full Issue, James L. Phelps Sep 2011

Educational Considerations, Vol. 39(1) Full Issue, James L. Phelps

Educational Considerations

Educational Considerations, vol. 39(1)-Fall 2011-Full issue


Introduction To The Special Issue, Faith E. Crampton, David C. Thompson Sep 2011

Introduction To The Special Issue, Faith E. Crampton, David C. Thompson

Educational Considerations

We are pleased to share with you this special issue revisiting the research on the relationship between class size and student achievement, along with its implications for education policymakers and practitioners. For over half a century, researchers have struggled to identify those variables that contribute in significant ways to students’ academic success, and the resulting, voluminous literature is rife with contradictory results. At the same time, the positive results of class size research, which is part of the body of “production function” analysis, has received broad acceptance by policymakers, parents, and practitioners who believe “smaller is better.”


A Practical Method Of Policy Analysis By Considering Productivity-Related Research, James L. Phelps Sep 2011

A Practical Method Of Policy Analysis By Considering Productivity-Related Research, James L. Phelps

Educational Considerations

The basic notion underlying schooling is rather simple: Hire teachers to instruct students. From there, the tasks become more complicated. How many teachers should be employed? What assignments should the teachers be given, in the classroom or in a supporting role? What assistance should teachers receive from aides or volunteers?


A Journey, Not A Destination, James L. Phelps Sep 2011

A Journey, Not A Destination, James L. Phelps

Educational Considerations

Closing Essay: Much of the motivation and ideas for the articles in this special issue originated with my dear friend, Maris Abolins, Professor Emeritus of Physics at Michigan State University. We started as neighbors and, as our kids grew up together, we socialized frequently. He is responsible for my interest in physics. I would read a physics book, which would become the subject of our next dinner conversation (while our wives talked about other, more social topics). Instead of a compilation of facts, physics became a way of thinking about problem solving. The “unified field” theory was the start of …


Factor Analysis Of Explanatory Variables In An Achievement Production Function, James L. Phelps Sep 2011

Factor Analysis Of Explanatory Variables In An Achievement Production Function, James L. Phelps

Educational Considerations

Addendum: Combining explanatory variables into factors instead of using individual variables in an achievement production function is advocated in several of the articles in this special issue. The following is a brief overview of factor analysis explaining and illustrating the reasoning for this technique.


The Effects Of Movement In The Classroom, Carrie Jean Braniff Jul 2011

The Effects Of Movement In The Classroom, Carrie Jean Braniff

Networks: An Online Journal for Teacher Research

After teaching and substitute teaching in various classrooms, I was determined to have a classroom full of movement and energy. In order to create an active classroom, I implemented several strategies that would help students work together, have opportunities for transitions and movement, and provide a reduced-stress environment. In order to study the influence of activity in the classroom, I did an action research study. I collected data, observation notes, and journal entries from the students during classroom activities. These journal entries the students included surveys that were completed at the beginning and end of the study. Collecting articles from …


Editorial Introduction, Catherine F. Compton-Lilly Jul 2011

Editorial Introduction, Catherine F. Compton-Lilly

Networks: An Online Journal for Teacher Research

The Spring 2011 issue of Networks offers a rich variety of articles to our readers. Touching on technology, movement in classrooms and multicultural competence the three lead articles ask educator to both consider instructional practices of the future and to reflect on the cultural knowledge that we do and do not bring to classrooms. In all three articles, readers are asked to rethink some of their assumptions about what happens in classrooms and what we need to consider as we make decisions about classroom practices.


Through The Eyes Of The Other: A Preservice Teacher's Journey Towards Multicultural Competence, Elizabeth Bifuh-Ambe, Paula Burnes Jul 2011

Through The Eyes Of The Other: A Preservice Teacher's Journey Towards Multicultural Competence, Elizabeth Bifuh-Ambe, Paula Burnes

Networks: An Online Journal for Teacher Research

There is an urgent need to prepare teachers to effectively meet the needs of diverse students in classrooms across the USA today. In response to this need, many teacher preparation institutions offer multicultural education (also referred to in the literature as diversity) courses that are geared towards providing prospective teachers with the necessary skills and dispositions necessary to meet the needs of diverse learners. Evidently, multicultural education is viewed as the solution to an educational system that puts many students at risk of failure due to their race, gender, exceptionalities, ethnicity, class, religion, language and sexual orientation (Banks, 1999; King, …


Review Of Leading Lesson Study: A Practical Guide For Teachers And Facilitators, Jay Allen Babcock Jul 2011

Review Of Leading Lesson Study: A Practical Guide For Teachers And Facilitators, Jay Allen Babcock

Networks: An Online Journal for Teacher Research

Put very simply, “[l]esson study is a professional development practice in which teachers collaborate to develop a lesson plan, teach, and observe the lesson to collect data on student learning, and [in which they] use their observations to refine their lesson” (p. 2). The approach was first developed in Japan and this book is just what the title purports it to be―a guide for teachers and facilitators who would like to bring this style of continuous professional development to their own classrooms. This book is for current in-service teachers who want to be involved with Lesson Study. All teachers wishing …


Book Review - Inquiry As Stance: Practitioner Research For The Next Generation, Jen Scott Curwood Jul 2011

Book Review - Inquiry As Stance: Practitioner Research For The Next Generation, Jen Scott Curwood

Networks: An Online Journal for Teacher Research

In Inquiry as Stance: Practitioner Research for the Next Generation, the sequel to Inside/Outside, the authors note that educators now find themselves teaching and learning in “trying times” (p. 5). Marked by test-based accountability, annual school progress reports, and pay-for-performance, the era of No Child Left Behind often threatens to undermine the agency and pedagogy of educators. But at the same time, Cochran-Smith and Lytle point out that “more and more practitioners are now expected to be the gatherers and interpreters of school and classroom data as part of larger initiatives to improve school achievement” (p. 1). Rather …


Podcasting As A Means Of Improving Spanish Speaking Skills In The Foreign Language Classroom: An Action Research Study, Maggie Brennan Juana, Deniz Palak Jun 2011

Podcasting As A Means Of Improving Spanish Speaking Skills In The Foreign Language Classroom: An Action Research Study, Maggie Brennan Juana, Deniz Palak

Networks: An Online Journal for Teacher Research

Using action research as a method of inquiry, a high school Spanish teacher undertook this study to understand how podcasting could be used to help improve students’ Spanish speaking skills. Multiple sources of data collected and analyzed by the teacher-researcher in collaboration with her students and other collaborators reveal that the frequency and variety of carefully designed weekly podcasting assignments over time helped improve student speaking skills. This paper provides a framework of reference for other K-12 teachers as to how they could use new technologies successfully and understand the effects in their classrooms.


Table Of Contents And Introductory Materials For Vol. 19, No. 1, Spring 2011, Bruce Quantic Apr 2011

Table Of Contents And Introductory Materials For Vol. 19, No. 1, Spring 2011, Bruce Quantic

The Advocate

This content includes the table of contents, editorial information, a message from the president of ATE-K, and a message from the editor for vol. 19, no. 1 (Spring 2011) for The Advocate.


Reflective Analysis Of The Transition Of A Face-To-Face Principal Preparation Program Into An Online Format, Robert Moody, Regi Weiland Apr 2011

Reflective Analysis Of The Transition Of A Face-To-Face Principal Preparation Program Into An Online Format, Robert Moody, Regi Weiland

The Advocate

This paper addresses the redesign of a face-to-face principal preparation program into an online program. An action research project began in 2004, gathering data to guide the transition. A key element was the commitment of program faculty to reflect throughout the process by considering their personal technological strengths, weaknesses, and needs, altering as needed. Data collection included investigating competing programs, feedback from principal interviews, focus groups, instructor evaluations, enrollment and retention data, and current curriculum. The results of the study, including growth in student enrollment, data from program exit exams, and student perceptions of the program are provided.