Education Commons^™

Hitting For Average: Educational Assessment, Unidimensionality, And The Connection To Baseball Hitting Statistics, Alex Romagnoli

Educational Considerations

The traditional points system and subsequent Grade Point Average (GPA) in education perpetuates an evaluation of academic performance which reflects arbitrary weighting of assignments and/or assessments. As such, GPAs which are calculated using a traditional points system are not unidimensional in their design. The baseball batting and slugging percentage, which serves as established metrics for performance evaluations among baseball players, better reflects unidimensionality. In essence, this paper puts forth an analysis and discussion which posits that baseball batting average and slugging percentage can serve as an example for how unidimensionality can become more prevalent in educational assessments, especially as it …

Chess And Education, Gülçin Karakuş

Educational Considerations

This review aims to present how chess improves student abilities and underlines inferences about chess and its educational benefits. In this study, quantitative samples, experimental designs, or test scores of studies are not the main focus. Numerous experimental studies and limited review studies about chess instruction in the literature express the effect of chess on students’ success and mental skills. However, almost all of these studies address only positive effects; this review attempts to explain how chess achieves this success. What are the other components of this effect? Is it really possible to determine how chess affects education? The question …

Going The Distance: Examining The Impact Of A Long-Term International Fellowship, Meikah Dado, Jessica R. Spence, Jack Elliot

Journal of International Agricultural and Extension Education

AgriCorps, an American organization, created a fellowship program to connect agricultural professionals to school-based agricultural education in developing countries. Previous scholars researched the impacts of international experiences on learners, usually through the lens of short-term study abroad. This study seeks to examine the impact of long-term international fellowship experiences in education and provide recommendations for future like-programs by analyzing the experiences of previous AgriCorps fellows. Fellows lived and taught school-based agricultural education in a community in Ghana or Liberia. Eighteen previous AgriCorps fellows participated in a semi-structured interview through a virtual meeting platform. The interviews were used to collect data …

Educational Silver Linings In The Cloud Of A Global Pandemic: Our Students Are Grittier Than We Think!, Linda E. Feldstein, Gary Andersen

The Advocate

This qualitative study combines two methodological frameworks in an attempt to elucidate the best of what occurred in the teaching and learning practices during the massive school closures necessitated during the COVID-19 pandemic in the U. S. Using a phenomenological viewpoint informed by the practices of appreciative inquiry, interviews were conducted with education professionals to hear stories of unanticipated benefits in education - times where things went well, new insights were gained, new teaching techniques/frameworks explored, or significant student benefits noted. Participant voices, experiences, ‘aha’ moments, insights, and thoughts form an emergent picture of what has gone well during this …

Rural Parent's Experiences Of Stress And Resilience During The Covid-19 Pandemic And School Closure, Emily Wilson, Jungwon Eum, Yuenjung Joo, Martinique A. Sealy, Jentry Stoneman Barrett, Gwen C. Nugent, Joan Carraher, Angela G. Hinrichs

Online Journal of Rural Research & Policy

The COVID-19 pandemic has generated social and economic disruptions, resulting in cascading effects on the health and well-being of global citizens. However, little research has focused on how COVID-19 has affected rural regions, despite rurality being a critical factor for understanding community impact and response to the pandemic. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore the experiences of rural Nebraskan parents with young children during the COVID-19 pandemic and school shutdown, and the strategies they used to support their families during that time. We conducted individual and group interviews with 22 white, non-Hispanic mothers living in rural towns, …

When Trauma Comes To School: Toward A Socially Just Trauma-Informed Praxis, Catriona O'Toole

International Journal of School Social Work

Given the prevalence and devastating consequences of childhood trauma, there has been a surge in initiatives to help schools become trauma-informed. However, despite the growing adoption of such initiatives, a number of concerns have been expressed. These include the lack of attention paid to issues of power and inequality including poverty, racism, and community violence as well as the power of adults to neglect, mistreat or abuse children. Contemporary approaches can also serve to inscribe deficit-based perceptions of children, reinforcing negative stereotypes and stigmas; and they tend to overlook the possibility that schools themselves can contribute to students’ distress, especially …

Anna Julia Cooper: Standing At The Intersection Of History And Hope, Shannon L. Eickhoff

Educational Considerations

Anna Julia Cooper transcended her historical place in time to become one of the most important examples of early resistance to intersectional oppression. Her seminal work, A Voice from the South (1892), articulates her feminine viewpoint on philosophy, social policies, religion, and the status of Black women’s education. Often using the language of the oppressor, Cooper’s acute wit and brilliant use of rhetorical devices allowed her to express herself in spheres of influence where she might otherwise have been silenced. Cooper’s steadfast dedication to racial uplift is illustrated through her life-long commitment to the education of Black women …

Teacher Self-Efficacy: The Missing Piece To Trauma-Informed Classroom Interventions, Sarah Lancaster

The Advocate

Once a child enters kindergarten they spend the majority of their waking hours in school. Therefore, school-based interventions that are trauma informed are crucial for promoting social-emotional learning and development. While there are some promising studies, professional development programs for educators have not systematically incorporated psychoeducation on childhood trauma and the impact it has on behavior and learning, or classroom-based strategies to enhance learning and development among children with a trauma history (McConnico, Boynton-Jarrett, Bailey, & Nandi, 2016). Furthermore, educators’ perceptions on how comfortable they are dealing with the trauma of students has not been widely explored (Crosby, Day, Baroni, …

Time Capsule: Artifacts For Documentation Of The Paradigm Shift, F. Todd Goodson

Educational Considerations

This issue of Educational Considerations is comprised of three manuscripts offering different applications of the tools of the historian within education.

Educators have a long and unfortunate history of ignoring their own history. Time and again, we pay a price for this in a variety of ways.

Experience Informed Philosophy, Tegan W. Nusser

Educational Considerations

John Dewey's philosophy of education did not arise in a vacuum. Much as Dewey himself would have recognized, his experiences shaped his philosophy. The experiences described include Dewey's time as a boy in Burlington, Vermont; his graduate education at Johns Hopkins University, and his first academic post at the University of Michigan; concluding with his time at the University of Chicago with his famous laboratory school. Following each narrative, Dewey's experiences are connected with and compared to his landmark publication Democracy and Education. Special consideration to the alignment of theory and practice helps to guide interpretation of his experiences with …

The Importance Of Planning Intellectually Challenging Tasks, Ali Althuwaybi

Educational Considerations

Since the emergence of the 21st century, advances in information, communication, and technology are changing teaching and learning in numerous ways. Today, teachers are essential for this momentum shift. The identification and design of appropriate and effective instructional tasks and applying them in the classroom will affect teaching and learning. However, this goes beyond offering curriculum and teaching materials to educators. Teachers should be able to stimulate passive curriculum materials and transform them into intriguing instructional tasks if they can specify resources, processes, and outcomes. Current literature underscores the need to support teachers in engaging in operational planning activities that …

Reimagining Education: Teaching And Learning In A Global Community, Lotta Larson

Educational Considerations

We can no longer debate if global awareness is essential. It is time to reimagine education and carefully consider how to prepare students and educators to thrive in a malleable world.

School Social Work In Northern Uganda In A Post-Conflict Context: A Case Of Anaka Foundation, Julius Omona

International Journal of School Social Work

Anaka Foundation is an indigenous NGO that is operating in northern Uganda in response to the post-war development challenges. Anaka recently concluded a school social work project, a specialization which is common in Western countries, to attempt to improve the learning environment of vulnerable children selected from nine government aided primary schools. This school social work pilot project was supported with a grant from AfriCarinthia, an organization from Austria. Relevant social work theories were applied and significant systems in the learning environment of the children were targeted through different interventions. A mixed before-and-after evaluation approach was used to arrive at …

The Diversity Of School Social Work In Germany: A Systematic Review Of The Literature, Kathrin F. Beck

International Journal of School Social Work

Children in Germany are confronted with an increasing societal inequality and disorientation that makes it difficult for them to cope with life. School social work in Germany is an intensive form of cooperation between the institutionally divided systems of child and youth welfare and education. The aim of this article is threefold: to present (1) relevant aspects of both systems, (2) the diversity of terms being used to describe this specific form of cooperation and (3) an exemplary selection of concepts of school social work. Therefore, a systematic review of the literature was done, taking publications between 2000 and 2016 …

Editorial Introduction To Pedagogy & (Im)Possibilities Across Education Research, J. Spencer Clark

Pedagogy & (Im)Possibilities across Education Research (PIPER)

The editorial board is excited to publish our first issue of Pedagogy & (Im)Possibilities across Education Research. We have spent nearly a year conceptualizing, shaping, and producing the journal and this first issue. We hope you find it engaging and thought provoking. We, therefore, formally welcome submissions to the journal and look forward to facilitating the advancement of research in education.

Introduction To The Special Issue: Leadership In Kansas For The 21st Century, Randy Watson

Educational Considerations

Kansas is currently experiencing a leadership challenge. This is evident both in the number of leaders new to their positions in K-12 school districts and in the methods our state must implement to effectively train those leaders for Kansas’ education to prosper into the 21st century.

North Dakota’S Experience With The Academy Model: A Successful Replication, Tom Hall, Ann Clappe

Educational Considerations

Leadership is a key factor in improving schools and ensuring academic success for all students. At the building level, the leadership role has traditionally been assigned to the principal, but principals cannot be expected to be the sole leaders in their buildings.

Bringing Back The Rhythm, Stephanie Jacques

Seek

The pitter-patter of tapping feet is music to the ears for Julie Pentz, Kansas State University’s dance program director and associate professor in the School of Music, Theatre, and Dance.

Leadership Education And Development For Justice Using The Canonical Framework Of John Rawls's A Theory Of Justice, Brandon W. Kliewer, Jeff Zacharakis

Educational Considerations

Higher education that presupposes a specific conception of justice do well in preparing students to make claims of justice from specific perspectives or positions. However, civic leadership students with a strong background in specific conceptions of justice are often not equipped with necessary skills, dispositions, and habits to exercise leadership in ways that can manage political contestation associated with competing claims of justice.

Community Connections: Integrating Community-Based Field Experiences To Support Teacher Education For Diversity, Christine Beaudry

Educational Considerations

In the United States, preservice teachers often graduate and go on to work with students whose backgrounds are different from their own and in communities in which they have limited lived experience. This holds significant implications for teacher education programs given the importance of life and educational experiences in informing teaching and learning knowledge and practices and the subsequent impact of these practices in shaping the experiences and trajectories of students’ lives.

Teaching The Truth: Difficulties With Social Justice And Social Class In Graduate School, Leona English, Carole Roy

Educational Considerations

Nowadays, anyone who wishes to combat lies and ignorance and to write the truth must overcome at least five difficulties. He must have the courage to write the truth when truth is everywhere opposed; the keenness to recognize it, although it is everywhere concealed; the skill to manipulate it as a weapon; the judgment to select those in whose hands it will be effective; and the cunning to spread the truth among such persons.

Education Funding And Student Outcomes: A Conceptual Framework For Measurement Of The Alignment Of State Education Finance And Academic Accountability Policies, Robert C. Knoeppel, Matthew R. Della Sala

Educational Considerations

The conceptualization and measurement of education finance equity and adequacy has engaged researchers for more than three decades. At the same time, calls for increased academic accountability and higher student achievement in K-12 public education have reached new levels at both the national and state levels.

A Professional Development School In Action: Meeting The Needs Of Military-Connected Students And Families, Sandy Risberg, Laurie Curtis, Lucas Shivers

Educational Considerations

The College of Education (COE) at Kansas State University and its Professional Development Schools (PDS) are partnering in innovative ways that demonstrate a commitment to work collaboratively to solve educational issues involving preservice teachers, practicing teachers, and faculty members, as well as K-12 students and their families.

Benefits Of 25 Years Of School District-University Partnerships To Improve Teacher Preparation And Advance School Renewal, Michael C. Holen, Dan C. Yunk

Educational Considerations

Generalizing about school district-teacher education program relationships across the long history and broad landscape of teacher preparation in America can prove challenging.

The Pds Model As A Vehicle For Simultaneous Renewal In Mathematics Education, Sherri L. Martinie, Chepina Rumsey, David S. Allen, Andrew Bennett, Deborah Abernathy, Brandys Zolnerowich, Melisa Hancock

Educational Considerations

For a quarter century, Kansas State University’s College of Education has supported a Professional Development School (PDS) model involving professional collaboration with selected public school systems across Kansas.

Public Higher Education Funding, Budget Drivers, And Related Issues: The State Community College Director Perspective, Stephen G. Katsinas, Mark M. D’Amico, Janice N. Friedel

Educational Considerations

This article presents results from the 2012 National Survey of Access and Finance Issues conducted by the National Council of State Directors of Community Colleges (NCSDCC), an affiliated council of the American Association of Community Colleges, and includes a comparison of survey results from previous years dating back to 2003, with the exception of 2005 and 2006 when the survey was not conducted.

Revisiting The Role Of Vouchers And Charter Schools In The Educational Market Place, Scott R. Sweetland

Educational Considerations

Perspectives on Vouchers and Charter Schools. Vouchers and charter schools are among the most recognized buzzwords in today’s education marketplace. Advocates assert that the quality of education will improve if consumers (i.e., parents) have greater access to schooling alternatives.

The State Of Education Funding In Israel, Iris Bendavid-Hadar

Educational Considerations

Perspectives on International Education Finance. Israel regards education as an essential part of its infrastructure for national security, competitive ability, and social cohesiveness.

Foreword, Diane Debacker

Educational Considerations

It is with great pleasure that I write the Foreword for this edition of Educational Considerations. When Dr. Thompson requested that I contribute to the journal with the Foreword, I was flooded with memories of scouring through issue upon issue of Educational Considerations as I was working on my doctorate in Educational Administration at Kansas State University several years ago. Educational Considerations has a rich and long history of being a practitioner's journal and this issue continues with that tradition.

Theory Into Practice: A Cry From The Field For Innovative Leadership Development, Debbie K. Mercer, Scott Myers

Educational Considerations

Leaders make the difference. This is uniquely evidenced in school districts where a single superintendent impacts the lives of so many children, teachers, staff, and community members every day. With so much responsibility, the need to mentor the ongoing professional learning and development of this key leader is critical.