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St. Cloud State University

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Full-Text Articles in Education

An Equitable Technology Infrastructure Model: Sustained Technology Practices Implemented During Covid-19 That Address Educational Inequities, Jennifer Hill, Tracy Reimer Sep 2023

An Equitable Technology Infrastructure Model: Sustained Technology Practices Implemented During Covid-19 That Address Educational Inequities, Jennifer Hill, Tracy Reimer

Teacher Development Faculty Presentations and Posters

2020 Abstract: The COVID-19 pandemic illuminated the digital divide revealing an expanse of inequity among students who had access to the internet, personal devices, and parental support during remote learning and those who did not. Framed with the theoretical lens of equity literacy, this poster details the results of a survey completed by 56 Minnesota district level technology directors. The survey asked how school districts were addressing the technology inequities experienced by students and families while in hybrid and distance learning models. Results reflected that districts’ efforts to provide students technology devices were efficient and successful. Recommendations for further research …

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3 Education Wins Sustained By District Technology Directors Post-Pandemic, Jennifer Hill, Tracy Reimer Jul 2023

3 Education Wins Sustained By District Technology Directors Post-Pandemic, Jennifer Hill, Tracy Reimer

Teacher Development Faculty Publications

Technology directors express optimism about the opportunity to reimagine school as a consequence of the pandemic. They describe three important wins post-pandemic: marked increases in teachers’ technology proficiency and improved digital pedagogy, addressing educational equity barriers through online learning models, and reimagining schools vs. long-held traditional educational models.

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Candidates' Modification Of Global Perspectives Via International Teaching: A Case Study, Hsuehi Lo Mar 2023

Candidates' Modification Of Global Perspectives Via International Teaching: A Case Study, Hsuehi Lo

Teacher Development Faculty Publications

I investigated U.S. elementary teacher candidates’ global perspectives before and after completing a student teaching experience in the People’s Republic of China (PRC). The samples, four elementary teacher candidates (TCs), purposely selected for the present study, completed student teaching in a Primary School in Xian, PRC, because they all come from Midwestern-culture family, complete teacher preparation course work, and are ready to do student teaching. I employed math lessons in this exploration of TCs’ global perceptions, looking for modifications; my primary interest was in potential changes from provincial to more refined perspec- tives. It is worth noting that the questions …

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Fostering School-Home Partnerships: Transforming Learning As A Result Of The Covid-19 Pandemic, Jennifer Hill, Tracy Reimer Jul 2022

Fostering School-Home Partnerships: Transforming Learning As A Result Of The Covid-19 Pandemic, Jennifer Hill, Tracy Reimer

Teacher Development Faculty Publications

The COVID-19 pandemic illuminated the need for schools to strengthen their relationships with families in order to support remote learning. Framed with the theoretical lens of the traditional partnership model, this paper details the results of a survey completed by 56 Minnesota district level technology directors. The survey asked how school districts were responding to the technology needs of students and families while in hybrid and distance learning models. Three main themes emerged from the survey data: maximizing caregiver support to improve student
learning, increasing attendance and engagement in the online learning environment, and building technology savviness in parents and …

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Will Minnesota Principals Continue To Hire School Librarians?, Jennifer Hill, Jane Prestebak Apr 2022

Will Minnesota Principals Continue To Hire School Librarians?, Jennifer Hill, Jane Prestebak

Teacher Development Faculty Working Papers

The number of school librarian positions are declining across the nation. In order to gain insight into this trend on a local level, two directors of school librarian preparation programs in Minnesota analyzed survey results of 251 Minnesota school leaders to determine what factors impact a principal’s decision to eliminate the position in their school. In examining the results of this mixed-methods study, only 42% reported their intention to replace their school librarian with another school librarian when the position becomes vacant. Others reported that they will fill the position with a paraprofessional (25%), or to hire a technology integration …

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Crossing The Digital Divide And The Equity Expanse: Reaching And Teaching All Students During The Pandemic, Jennifer Hill, Tracy Reimer Jan 2022

Crossing The Digital Divide And The Equity Expanse: Reaching And Teaching All Students During The Pandemic, Jennifer Hill, Tracy Reimer

Teacher Development Faculty Publications

The COVID-19 pandemic illuminated the digital divide revealing an expanse of inequity among students who had access to the internet, personal devices, and parental support during remote learning and those who did not. Framed with the theoretical lens of equity literacy, this paper details the results of a survey completed by 56 Minnesota district level technology directors. The survey asked how school districts were addressing the technology inequities experienced by students and families while in hybrid and distance learning models. Results reflected that districts’ efforts to provide students technology devices were efficient and successful. Of greatest concern for respondents was …

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Welcome To The Profession: Exploring Perceptions Of New Teacher Retention Supports, Amy Christensen, Michele Barron-Albers Oct 2021

Welcome To The Profession: Exploring Perceptions Of New Teacher Retention Supports, Amy Christensen, Michele Barron-Albers

Educational Administration and Leadership Faculty Publications

Numerous studies have identified a research to practice gap regarding teacher retention (Hagaman & Casey, 2018; Carver, 2003; CCSESA, 2016). In Minnesota, teacher retention is a concern as 51.32% of professional licensed teachers were not working as a public or charter school teacher during the 2019-2020 school year. (PELSB, 2021). The objective of our ongoing phenomenological study is to identify and address what common themes exist across multiple groups of educational professionals regarding retention rates of Minnesota teachers new to the profession. Our study employs grounded theory to analyze educational professionals’ reflective writings to expand insights regarding why half of …

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K-5 Social Studies Content Standards: Investigating Critical Thinking For Informed Action, Oluseyi Matthew Odebiyi Oct 2021

K-5 Social Studies Content Standards: Investigating Critical Thinking For Informed Action, Oluseyi Matthew Odebiyi

Teacher Development Faculty Publications

Reform efforts in social studies education such as the College Career, and Civic Life (C3) framework encourage students to consider civic engagement and action based on the understanding of real-life social issues. Few studies have, however, systematically examined the foundational documents representing the official state stance on content selection. Fewer studies have sought to understand the affordances and constraints in the depth of reasoning expected from young students in social studies elementary education. This study explored the dynamics of context-based critical thinking within the frame of states’ Kindergarten-5 social studies content standards in the U.S.A. Employing a quantitative content analysis …

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Covid Disruption Requires More Than Providing A Device: How Districts Are Engaging Students And Families Online, Jennifer Hill, Tracy Reimer Sep 2021

Covid Disruption Requires More Than Providing A Device: How Districts Are Engaging Students And Families Online, Jennifer Hill, Tracy Reimer

Teacher Development Faculty Publications

As school districts pivoted to online delivery in the spring of 2020, the urgent need for each student to have a device in hand and internet connectivity was a remarkable challenge. Immediate action was taken, incredible financial investments were made, and creative problem solving peaked to provide students access to the tools needed for online learning. Despite this laudable feat, districts are entering the third school year disrupted by COVID and confronted with the Delta surge, disheartening student learning loss, and an emerging reality that hybrid and online learning models are not going away. Truancy issues, unresponsive home supports, and …

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The Impact Of Covid-19 On Early Childhood Reading Practices, Deborah L. Wheeler, Jennifer Hill Sep 2021

The Impact Of Covid-19 On Early Childhood Reading Practices, Deborah L. Wheeler, Jennifer Hill

Teacher Development Faculty Publications

COVID-19 has changed the daily lives of families, impacted work, social interactions, and mental health. Since spring 2020, parents have been working from home and children have been home from daycare and school. Parents are experiencing stress in an attempt to satisfy the demands of work, family, and COVID-19 concerns. Due to the fact that children have been home from daycare and school, parents have the sole responsibility of caring for and teaching their children until schools are able to fully and effectively meet the needs of educating students in an adapted format. Research provides a wealth of information documenting …

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Community Partners’ Satisfaction With Community-Based Learning Collaborations, Rona Karasik, Elena S. Hafner Sep 2021

Community Partners’ Satisfaction With Community-Based Learning Collaborations, Rona Karasik, Elena S. Hafner

Gerontology Faculty Publications

Community-university partnerships offer the potential for a number of mutual benefits, yet working with institutions of higher education can pose unique challenges for community participants. To better understand the community perspective, this paper explores community partners’ satisfaction with their involvement in various forms of community-based learning (e.g., service-learning, internships, community-based research). Drawn from a larger, mixed-methods study of community partners across 13 states, the current analysis assesses community agency representatives’ (N = 201) satisfaction with their community-university partnerships in general as well their satisfaction with specific elements of these collaborations. While the findings reflect generally positive levels of satisfaction overall, …

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What Covid-19 Taught Us About The Blended Model, Deborah L. Wheeler, Jennifer Hill Jul 2021

What Covid-19 Taught Us About The Blended Model, Deborah L. Wheeler, Jennifer Hill

Teacher Development Faculty Working Papers

Initially, many faculty in higher education were apprehensive when courses went online in Spring 2020, but they eventually learned a lot about how to effectively teach online. The need for well-designed online courses for faculty in higher education is more prominent than ever-before in the wake of the COVID-19. As reluctant or apprehensive as faculty members were, the move to an online platform offered an opportunity to learn about diverse tools, resources, and innovative ways to teach both in the blended synchronous model and the asynchronous online model. Faculty and students encountered issues, but quickly learned to overcome these challenges. …

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American Miseducation: Myths, Distortions, And Illusions, Luke S. Tripp Jun 2021

American Miseducation: Myths, Distortions, And Illusions, Luke S. Tripp

Ethnic and Women's Studies Working Papers

Unfortunately, most Americans are woefully miseducated about their country. Their beliefs about America are erroneously based on myths, lies, and slick propaganda. Moreover, their miseducation begins very early in their lives and continues throughout their lifetime. They are conditioned early in their preschool years to accept a fictional image of America through fairy tales, which portray imaginary heroes. The great myths in American history are an obstacle to racial harmony. To the detriment of Black people, the reality that the myths about the United States are more widely known and believed than the historical truths point to the crucial problem …

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Monarch Butterfly., Bermudez J. Ferrell May 2021

Monarch Butterfly., Bermudez J. Ferrell

ESL for Academic Purposes

This unit covers the migration of the monarch butterflies from Michoacan, Mexico, to the Northern parts of America. This Monarch Butterfly unit is geared toward WIDA level 3: developing or CEFR B2 English language learners in middle school or high school. The primary focus of this unit is reading and writing; however, the last day has a speaking activity. The scaffolding for reading included in this unit are pre-readings, during-reading activities, and vocabulary acquisition worksheets. The unit’s content goes over an introductory section, followed by an article, finally wrapping up with a cause and effect activity and tips students can …

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Emperor Penguins, Dan Wu May 2021

Emperor Penguins, Dan Wu

ESL for Academic Purposes

The purpose of this unit is to develop students’ English skills and familiarize them with emperor penguins. The topic of the unit is about emperor penguins. Students will be able to learn the basic information of the species and its huddle behavior, incubating and parenting, as well as human impact on the species. The unit is designed for intermediate level ESL or EFL pre-academic students on the A2-B1 level of the CEFR scale. The assessments involve pair work, group work and individual tasks, through which students will be able to develop listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills.

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Supporting Students Through Online Learning, Kristen M. Carlson May 2021

Supporting Students Through Online Learning, Kristen M. Carlson

Teacher Development Faculty Publications

With the onset of a pandemic, there were opportunities and challenges for supporting learners. Schools and universities were physically closed while interaction shifted to a distance learning modality. In some instances, courses became asynchronous, while other courses met synchronously using video conferencing. Educators were adaptable when the pandemic occurred, quickly setting up home offices to meet their learners’ needs. This occurrence showed that it was in educators’ best interest to understand distance best practices. Distance learning has been utilized at institutions in the United States for the past two decades. However, it has not been widely adopted as mainstream because …

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Autism: The Life Of Present And Future, Jong Moon Kim Mar 2021

Autism: The Life Of Present And Future, Jong Moon Kim

ESL for Academic Purposes

This unit addresses people with autism and the inherent characteristics and struggles people affected by autism strive to overcome. Students can understand the traits of autism, the challenges autistic people have, and ways to support them. The unit is aimed at English Language Learners and is written to help ELLs learn more autism and the people who live with autism. Also, it is useful for teenagers and adults living with people who are autistic. It is intended for secondary school students with a B1 level on the CEFR scale. Students can improve their academic vocabulary related to autism, reading, listening, …

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Forgotten History: The Stonewall Riots, Kaitlin Comfort Mar 2021

Forgotten History: The Stonewall Riots, Kaitlin Comfort

ESL for Academic Purposes

This unit covers the underrepresented history of LGBTQ+ people in the United States by exploring the landmark event: The Stonewall Riots. It primarily focuses on listening and writing domains supported by jigsaw and vocabulary acquisition activities. The use of prepositions, identifying supporting details, and summarizing are also covered. As a final project, students will have the chance to explore an underrepresented event from their own culture. This unit is targeted at high school, college, or adult students at a B2 level or higher on the CEFR scale and incorporates the use of technology. The content in the unit will serve …

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The Unknown Heroes Of Wwii, Okumura Melissa Mar 2021

The Unknown Heroes Of Wwii, Okumura Melissa

ESL for Academic Purposes

This unit introduces ESL students to the history of the Military Intelligence Service Language School (MISLS), its students, and their contributions as English-Japanese translators and interpreters during WWII. It is intended to be used as a U.S. history unit in an ESL context for high school and college students. It is designed for EL learners at a CEFR B2—C1 Level. The goal of the exercises in this unit are to introduce historical academic vocabulary, develop students’ reading and listening comprehension about a historical topic, and explore the cultural complexities of the MISLS students’ lives through writing, speaking, and visual projects. …

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Che Guevara: Hero Or Villain?, Alberto Ramos Mar 2021

Che Guevara: Hero Or Villain?, Alberto Ramos

ESL for Academic Purposes

This integrated unit covers the life and political ideology of the revolutionary Che Guevara. This unit is intended for B2 CEFR ESL or EFL college students. By engaging in this unit, students will enhance their listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills in English. Students will be engaged and challenged to think critically about current political issues and how to become more responsible global citizens.

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Climate Vocabulary, A Minnesota Experience, Eve Thao Jan 2021

Climate Vocabulary, A Minnesota Experience, Eve Thao

ESL for Academic Purposes

This unit explores the four seasons in the state of Minnesota, United States of America. The goal of this unit is to introduce various climate-related vocabulary to ELL’s, while providing them with an opportunity to describe climate in their own words and usage in real or authentic conversations. The preferred audience for this unit is young adult English Language Learners ages 18-21, in either the ESL or EFL context. This unit is best suited for students with an ELL proficiency level of A2 based on the CEFR scale.

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Chief Joseph, Eric Daeuber Jan 2021

Chief Joseph, Eric Daeuber

ESL for Academic Purposes

This unit introduces ESL and EFL students to the ongoing struggle between the Indigenous people of the Unites States and the United States federal government with reference to the events of the Nez Perce War of 1877 and the leader of the Nez Perce, Chief Joseph. The unit is aimed at young adult and adult learners at the B2 level with 93% of the vocabulary included in the first 1000 most used English words. Exercises use contemporary readings as well as archival material to cover vocabulary topics such as long definitions as well as structural elements such as finding the …

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Volcanoes., Frances H. Goldsmith Jan 2021

Volcanoes., Frances H. Goldsmith

ESL for Academic Purposes

This learning unit explores the basic information about volcanoes from a scientific and safety perspective. This unit is intended for a beginning to middle level ESL or EFL course intended for elementary school students on the A2 level of the CEFR scale. With this unit, students are able to work on their skills including vocabulary, writing, speaking, and be able to conduct hands-on activities. This includes a blend of individual work, group work, and physical activities. The purpose of this unit is to teach students more about volcanoes in a simple, yet engaging style.

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Midwest Elementary School Principals And The Use Of Social Media, Jennifer Hill Jan 2021

Midwest Elementary School Principals And The Use Of Social Media, Jennifer Hill

Teacher Development Faculty Publications

The purpose of this mixed-methods study was to examine the use of social media among elementary school principals in Minnesota. It was part of a dissertation study conducted at Bethel University (Hill, 2016). The survey collected data from elementary school principals across the state of Minnesota gathering demographic information on age, years of service, presence of a district social media policy, gender, school location, school size, and school poverty level as defined by its free and reduced lunch rate. As a result of the study, it was found that a negative relationship exists between the number of years of service …

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K-Pop Culture: The Success Of Bts, Shinjung Kim Nov 2020

K-Pop Culture: The Success Of Bts, Shinjung Kim

ESL for Academic Purposes

This unit addresses several factors behind the great success of BTS, a Korean boy idol group, all over the world, while providing the opportunity for learners to reflect upon themselves. This unit is intended for English language learners in either as an ESL and EFL context. The unit will be of most interest to teenagers and young adults. Learners should have a B1 level of proficiency or higher. By working through the unit, learners will increase their academic vocabulary, reading, listening, speaking, and writing skills.

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Superstitions From Around The World, Annie Espinal Nov 2020

Superstitions From Around The World, Annie Espinal

ESL for Academic Purposes

This open educational resource is a lesson for students who are studying English in a multicultural classroom. This specific unit, Superstition, is meant for intermediate ESL learners, with an A2 level on the CEFR scale. The goal of this unit is to encourage students to share about their own cultures, comparing and exchanging various superstitions and beliefs from their countries, and to help develop multiple language skills like reading, speaking, and listening, while engaging in different activities.

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Bob Marley, Danayit Desalegn Oct 2020

Bob Marley, Danayit Desalegn

ESL for Academic Purposes

This integrated unit covers the life of a cultural icon and a famous Reggae artist, Bob Marley. The unit is intended for an advanced ESL or EFL listening and speaking course. It will be most engaging to young adults and adult learners. Learners should have a B2/C1 level of proficiency or higher on the CEFR language scale. By engaging with this unit, learners will enhance their academic vocabulary, grammar, reading, writing, critical thinking, listening, and speaking skills. This unit is intended to increase students' cultural awareness of a popular music genre and Rastafarianism.

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Comparing Human Communication And Animal Communication, Firas Ismail Oct 2020

Comparing Human Communication And Animal Communication, Firas Ismail

ESL for Academic Purposes

What is language? People might say that humans are not the only living beings that use language. The types of communication that animals use is definitely useful and does meet some of the same goals as human speech, but it is not truly language. What are these differences in communication that separate humans from animals, and why are they important. This is the topic of the unit, which encourages not only practical applications of language use (Vocabulary, Reading, Writing, Grammar Usage, Speaking, and Listening), but also critical thinking on the concept of language itself. This unit tries to encourage metalinguistic …

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Salvadoran Food: Pupusas, Nelson Morales Vasquez Sep 2020

Salvadoran Food: Pupusas, Nelson Morales Vasquez

ESL for Academic Purposes

The unit presents a delicious combination between Salvadoran cuisine and Language learning activities. The unit is intended for a cultural lesson in an EAP program and it provides a glance into the history of Salvadoran cuisine, Pupusas. Learner should have B2 level of proficiency or higher. By working through the unit, learners will be able to not only explain what Pupusas are, but also describe how to make them. It includes three projects that can be carried out to deepen and assess leaners’ understanding of this unit.

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Music In World Cultures: Flamenco Unit, Whitney Krogstad-Yambrick Sep 2020

Music In World Cultures: Flamenco Unit, Whitney Krogstad-Yambrick

ESL for Academic Purposes

This is a content-based course called Music in World Cultures. The course is meant to educate students on international music genres. This specific unit presents the flamenco dance. It is intended for adult learners of English with a B2 level on the CEFR scale. The goal of this unit is to inform students about the flamenco and to encourage them to think critically.

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