Education Commons^™

2012 Northwest Arkansas Report Card, Gary Ritter

Education Report Card

No abstract provided.

Exploring Supports Provided For Student Eportfolio Development In A Professional Development Context, Muireann Okeeffe

Articles

This small scale study aimed to explore and establish if support strategies implemented to enhance student ePortfolios were helpful to students and to identify useful ways of supporting ePortfolio development with future cohorts of students. This action research study was informed through focus group discussion and individual interviews with students.

The importance of reflection for the development professional practice and of creative abilities is discussed. The substantial benefits of creativity within education are investigated and characteristics of creativity that might be developed with students’ ePortfolios are revealed. Specifically this paper seeks to foster Crafts (2011) four characteristics of creativity, pluralities, …

Making Room For Formative Assessment Processes: A Multiple Case Study, Rob Mcentarffer

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This qualitative instrumental multiple case study (Stake, 2005) explored how teachers made room for formative assessment processes in their classrooms, and how thinking about assessment changed during those formative assessment experiences. Data were gathered from six teachers over three months and included teacher interviews, student interviews, participant-observation notes, videos of classroom experiences, and classroom artifacts. These data were analyzed using a category construction method (Merriam, 2009) that involved open coding, axial coding, and finally a cross-case analysis that grouped axial codes according to themes relating to the two research questions. Four case studies describe the process of co-created work with …

A Multi-Institutional Project To Develop Discipline-Specific Data Literacy Instruction For Graduate Students, Sarah Wright, Michael Fosmire, Jon Jeffryes, Marianne Stowell Bracke, Brian Westra

Libraries Faculty and Staff Presentations

What data stewardship skills are needed by future scientists to fulfill their professional responsibilities and take advantage of opportunities in e-science? How can academic librarians contribute their expertise in information organization, dissemination and preservation to better serve modern science? With support from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), four research libraries have formed a partnership to address these questions. The aims of the partnership are to identify the data stewardship skills, including data management and curation, needed by graduate students at the research discipline level, to identify trends that extend across the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) …

Western Educational Longitudinal Study (Wels) Baseline Survey Of Transfers Entering Western In The Fall, 2012, Linda D. (Linda Darlene) Clark, Peter Felt, Beth Hartsoch, John M. Krieg

Office of Institutional Effectiveness

The WELS Baseline Survey of Transfers Entering Western in the Fall, 2012 (Transfer Survey) is the companion survey to the Office of Survey Research’s (OSR) survey of incoming freshmen. Together, these surveys elicit information from students prior to the start of their Western academic careers and provide an initial contact in a longitudinal survey design that follows students through graduation and into their initial years as alumni. The Transfer Survey is designed with three purposes in mind: (1) to provide baseline observations of students prior to the Western experience that can be used to forecast and enhance student success; (2) …

Western Educational Longitudinal Study (Wels) Baseline Survey Of Freshmen Entering Western In The Fall, 2012: Descriptive Statistics, Linda D. (Linda Darlene) Clark, Peter Felt, Beth Hartsoch, John M. Krieg

Office of Institutional Effectiveness

The Fall 2012 Baseline Survey of Freshmen Entering Western (Freshmen Survey) continues the Office of Survey Research’s (OSR) efforts to collect information on all students prior to the start of their academic careers at Western Washington University. This survey represents the initial contact in a longitudinal process that makes inquiries of students at the end of their sophomore year, when they graduate from the university, and one to two years after graduation. The Freshmen Survey is designed with three purposes in mind: (1) to provide baseline observations of students prior to their Western experience which can be used to forecast …

Key Factors And Stages Of Collaboration Within Community College/Automotive Industry Sector Partnerships, Annette Parker

Dissertations

As corporations compete they recognize the need to reengineer operations to reflect the impact of a globalized market and attract, retain, and grow the skill sets of employees as strategic assets. To meet the need for employee continuous learning, financial turbulence, and rapid technological advancements, corporations have accelerated the formation of collaborative partnerships with higher education. At the same time, higher education institutions have a growing number of working adult students in attendance and view collaboration with corporations as a means to increase enrollment and revenue streams. These factors have created an opportunity to explore the dynamics of key factors …

An Analysis Of The Factors That Influence Global Mindedness In First-Year College Students, Kristie Broadbent Guffey

Dissertations

This non-experimental, quantitative descriptive study was designed to determine what factors influence a first-year college students’ global mindedness and if any of those factors were predictors of the five subscales of global mindedness. Surveys were used to measure students’ global mindedness and their type of personality (N=424). Demographic questions were administered that included gender, county population, Pell grant eligibility, and first generation college student. Results indicated that first-year college students at a four-year public Master’s Large institution were moderately global minded. To predict global mindedness and its subscales, a regression model was developed using the Myers Briggs scores for extravert, …

An Exploration Of African American Male Community College Students' Experiences Concerning Their Successful Postsecondary Enrollment, Robin Dabney

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Despite increased numbers of African American male students in higher education, their academic achievement levels continue to be at disproportionate numbers compared to other ethnic groups and genders (U.S. Census Bureau, 2005). The purpose of this phenomenological study is to explore lived experiences of African American male community college students concerning factors hindering their academic progress and to understand perceptions of factors that influence their academic achievement in higher education. The current study identifies pertinent factors that will assist African American males to become successful in their postsecondary experiences. Findings from this study provide insights into predictors that may lead …

A Phenomenological Study Of Experienced Teacher Perceptions Regarding Cooperative Learning Training And Cooperative Learning Implementation In The Classroom, Susan Robinson

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This qualitative phenomenological study sought to explore the perceptions of experienced teachers regarding cooperative learning training and its implementation in the classroom. Twelve total participants, nine teachers and three administrators, volunteered for this six-week study at a private, K3 - 12 school in Broward County, Florida. The study's purpose was guided by the following questions: (1) What do experienced teachers perceive about cooperative learning training as it relates to their classroom teaching? (2) What do experienced teachers perceive regarding cooperative learning use as it relates to their classroom teaching? (3) What are the impacts of cooperative learning training and implementation …

Identifying Causes Of Student End Of Year Transfers As Experienced At Private All-Male Military Boarding Schools: A Multiple Case Study, Frank Martin

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This study examined and helped identify causes for end-of-year transfers from private all-male military boarding schools to a non-military school. The purposes of this study were twofold. The first purpose was to identify the reasons why parents chose to transfer their sons from the all-male military private boarding school of their choice to another school from the 2009-2010 school year to the 2010-2011 school year. A secondary purpose was to identify any commonalities amongst the military schools involved in the study regarding why students returned to either their previous school or chose another school, whether public or private. The researcher …

A Phenomenology Of Academic Support In Culturally And Linguistically Diverse Homes Of At-Risk Students, David Barber

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

I examined the home environment and the amount of academic support non-English speaking parents are able to provide for their English Language Learner (ELL) children in the United States school system. In particular, the focus is on the families of children who struggle academically in the state of Georgia, where non-English speaking children are mainstreamed into regular education classrooms with limited support. Although there has been a great deal of research on how ELLs learn and what type of program can be used to best facilitate mastery of academics as they are learning the English language, the focal point of …

Using Dweck's Theory Of Motivation To Determine How A Student's View Of Intelligence Affects Their Overall Academic Achievement, Keely P'Pool

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

This study explored how student intelligence was directly linked to the goals and motivation held by students when engaged in academic settings. Students were administered a questionnaire developed by Dr. Carol Dweck in which they responded to statements in order to determine their individual theory of intelligence. Once this was accomplished, multiple student variables (including but not limited to first semester GPA, second semester GPA, ACT composite score, age, and college coursework) were compared to their view of intelligence to determine if any correlations existed.

Results showed that there was no significant difference between students who viewed intelligence as malleable …

Tablets As Powerful Tools For University Research: Teaching The Relevant Skills, Robin Canuel, Chad Crichton, Maria Savova

Library Staff Publications and Research

The increasing popularity of tablet computers in recent years is beginning to transform the way that library users, and in particular postsecondary students and faculty, find and engage with digital content. In response to these changes, university librarians are tailoring information literacy instruction to highlight the advantages of these technologies to their constituencies and to ensure that their users understand the myriad issues involved in effectively leveraging these advantages to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of their research. Chapter 6 of Library Technology Reports (vol. 48, no. 8) “Rethinking Reference and Instruction with Tablets” examines the creation of university library …

When Tests Fail: Why Our Public Education System Needs To Rethink High-Stakes Standardized Testing, Thomas J. Shields

School of Professional and Continuing Studies Faculty Publications

While we were in Finland, we met with students, teachers, university faculty and other leaders, such as Pasi Sahlberg, author of "Finnish Lessons: What Can the World Learn from Educational Change in Finland." When we asked Sahlberg what was the most important change that the United States could make to improve its education system, he replied without hesitation: Eliminate high-stakes standardized testing.

Diagnosing Weakness In Basic Principles Of Electricity In Motor Apprentice Education In Ireland, Peter Kenny

Conference Papers

Many Motor trade apprentice students enter the later years of their studies ill prepared for the level of material encountered. This is due to several factors including the level and knowledge of basic electricity and electrical/electronic principles.

A lot of basic material in these areas has been covered during earlier years of their training but by the time they reach the final year of their apprenticeship (Phase 6) it is not safe to assume that they have a full grasp of the basics required.

We have developed a diagnostic test to measure the level of preparedness of these students. This …

Changing The Assessment To Promote Deeper Learning, Jennifer Byrne

Conference papers

The Technological University Dublin is one of the largest multi-level higher education providers in Ireland. The Institute’s traditional mission has always been focused on teaching and learning in the field of advanced technical vocational education and training (TVET), and one of its agendas is to foster and encourage changes in teaching practice and methodology in order to enhance the student learning experience.

This paper is a result of the ever changing process which shows the evolution of the assessment process to its current format. It was driven by the fact that we as lecturers realised that the assessments promoted surface …

Core Competencies In Civic Engagement, Leila Brammer, Rebecca Dumlao, Audrey Falk, Elizabeth Hollander, Ellen Knutson, Jeremy Poehnert, Andrea Politano, Valerie Werner

Center for Engaged Democracy Publications

A review and synthesis of key competencies contained in national-level reports on Civic Engagement, academic programs engaged in community-based models of teaching, learning and research, including a review of the literature and almost 30 academic civic engagement programs around the country.

Outstanding Educational Performance Awards: Highlighting High-Achieving Arkansas Schools, 2012, Sarah M. Burks, Caleb P. Rose, Gary W. Ritter

Arkansas Education Reports

No abstract provided.

Select Readiness: Assessing The Clinical Learning Environment Of A Regional Branch Medical Campus, Margaret A. Hadinger Edd, Ms, Erica T. Mahady Ma, Edward Norris Md, Fapm, J Alan Otsuki Md, Mba

Department of Education

No abstract provided.

Uno Aqip Systems Portfolio 2012, Neal Topp

Accreditation

This is the UNO Systems Portfolio document submitted to AQIP in 2012.

Teacher Unions, The Right To Work, And Fair Share Agreements, Charles J. Russo, C. Daniel Raisch

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

The status of collective bargaining in public education is in flux. As a result of a movement that began in the early 1960s, more than 30 states now have laws that allow teachers and other public school employees to form unions in order to bargain collectively with their school boards over the terms and conditions of their employment.

Further, three jurisdictions prohibit public-sector unions, and in an overlapping tapestry, 23 states—most recently Indiana— have enacted right-to-work laws that bar contracts that require workers to join unions as a condition of employment.

Aware that unions derive their operating revenues from member …

Making Performance-Based Evaluation Work For You: A Recipe For Personal Learning, Audrey Church

Education & Human Services Faculty Publications

Teacher observation and teacher evaluation are a given in American schools, and Charlotte Danielson's work in teacher effectiveness and professional practice has guided evaluation efforts for many years. There is a new, big kid in town, however. As Race to the Top requires documentation of student growth, and research shows that teacher effectiveness is a key factor in student learning, people see full implementation of performance-based teacher-evaluation systems in states and school districts across the nation. The goal of performance-based teacher evaluation is actually two-fold: first, to document teacher effectiveness and, second, to guide professional …

Assessment Matters #16, Nov 2012, Assessment In Action Committee

Assessment Matters @ WMU

No abstract provided.

Excellent Teaching: A Collective Case Study Of Outstanding Elementary Mathematics Teachers' Teaching Of Mathematics, Michael J. Gay

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This qualitative collective case study explored the mathematical teaching of three excellent elementary teachers who were nominated by experts in mathematics and mathematics educational organizations, agencies and universities. I examined what excellent elementary mathematics teachers know and do in their practice of teaching. The study depicts detailed verbatim interactions between the teachers and students during actual teaching episodes to give the reader naturalistic examples of the explanation patterns and questioning strategies that these excellent teachers used to further students’ understandings of mathematical concepts and procedures. Analyses of the pedagogical strategies, including the interactive exploratory problem solving format these teachers used, …

Aqtf Quality Indicator Service : 2011-12 Report, Acer

Transition and Post-School Education and Training

In 2007 ACER lead a sector-side development, deployment and support of a set of instruments and reporting tools to underpin a new data-driven and outcomes-focused approach to quality assurance in Australia’s vocational education and training sector. The AQTF 2007 Quality Indicator survey resources provide building blocks for a wide range of conversations about the quality of vocational education and training. Such feedback is used in education systems and organisations to obtain information on the quality of education and training.

Broadly speaking, collecting information about performance provides a valuable source of data for RTOs to:

◗◗ gauge how well they are …

Neural Underpinnings Of Prosody In Autism, Inge-Marie Eigsti, Jillian Schuh, Einar Mencl, Robert T. Schultz, Rhea Paul

Communication Disorders Faculty Publications

This study examines the processing of prosodic cues to linguistic structure and to affect, drawing on fMRI and behavioral data from 16 high-functioning adolescents with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and 11 typically developing controls. Stimuli were carefully matched on pitch, intensity, and duration, while varying systematically in conditions of affective prosody (angry versus neutral speech) and grammatical prosody (questions versus statement). To avoid conscious attention to prosody, which normalizes responses in young people with ASD, the implicit comprehension task directed attention to semantic aspects of the stimuli. Results showed that when perceiving prosodic cues, both affective and grammatical, activation of …

Spring 2012 Follow-Up Survey Of Freshmen Who Entered In The Fall Of 2010: Descriptive Statistics, Linda D. (Linda Darlene) Clark, Beth Hartsoch, John M. Krieg

Office of Institutional Effectiveness

The Spring 2012 Follow-Up Survey of Freshmen Who Entered Western in 2010 (2nd Year Survey) is part of a longitudinal effort to survey students with a goal to improve educational programs and provide self -assessment data. Together with the Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education, the Office of Survey Research (OSR) designed this survey in an attempt to shed light on the efficacy and satisfaction with first year and GUR programs. This particular survey also received input from other campus offices which provides opportunities for these offices to address their specific needs. The 2nd Year Survey consists of a mixture of …

Authentic Assessment : An Approach To Enhance And Assess Students’ Learning, Sher Azim

Professional Development Centre, Chitral

This paper underscores the process of using Authentic Assessment (AA) not only as a tool to assess learning but also as an approach to enhance learning in a school in the context of Pakistan. Data was collected through classroom observations, conducting interviews, analyzing relevant documents and maintaining person reflective diary. Findings indicate that AA helped in enhancing students’ learning such as knowledge about the noise pollution, planning, developing interview questions, interviewing people, preparing posters, giving presentation and responding to audience question. The study also revealed that in AA the student’s role changed from a passive test taker to an active …

Gendered Socialization With An Embodied Agent: Creating A Social And Affable Mathematics Learning Environment For Middle-Grade Females, Yanghee Kim, Jae Hoon Lim

Instructional Technology and Learning Sciences Faculty Publications

This study examined whether or not embodied-agent-based learning would help middle-grade females have more positive mathematics learning experiences. The study used an explanatory mixed-methods research design. First, a classroom-based experiment was conducted with one hundred and twenty 9th-graders learning introductory algebra (53% male and 47% female; 51% Caucasian and 49% Latino). The results revealed that learner gender was a significant factor in the learners’ evaluations of their agent (η2 = .07), the learners’ task-specific attitudes (η2 = .05), and their task-specific self-efficacy (η2 = .06). In-depth interviews were then conducted with 22 students selected from the experiment participants. The interviews …