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Theses/Dissertations

2009

Walden University

Elementary Education and Teaching

Keyword

Articles 1 - 11 of 11

Full-Text Articles in Education

The Relationship Between Vocabulary Development, Low Socioeconomic Status, And Teacher Discourse, Amy M. Pritts Jan 2009

The Relationship Between Vocabulary Development, Low Socioeconomic Status, And Teacher Discourse, Amy M. Pritts

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Elementary students from low socioeconomic households often begin and remain behind other socioeconomic groups in vocabulary knowledge. Many reasons for this gap, including cognitive, environmental, and educational, have been researched. The current study examined the relationship between vocabulary knowledge, socioeconomic status, and type of teacher discourse within an early elementary setting not yet explored within the research. This concurrent mixed-method research study investigated this relationship using study groups, taped classroom lessons, and the DIBELS word use fluency assessment measure. Interpretative analysis was used for the qualitative data, and correlational analysis was used to determine relationships between the discourse types and …


Nonquantifiable Instructional Factors That Contribute To Achievement In Reading For Students In Grades 3-4 In A Midwestern Urban School District, Alice Marie Figgs Jan 2009

Nonquantifiable Instructional Factors That Contribute To Achievement In Reading For Students In Grades 3-4 In A Midwestern Urban School District, Alice Marie Figgs

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Currently some elementary students in large urban school districts are not able to perform well in school because they do not have strong reading skills. The recent No Child Left Behind (NCLB) federal legislation has supported the use of research-based instructional materials and strategies in reading to remedy this problem; however, qualitative studies exploring the specific nonquantifiable instructional factors that contribute to reading achievement in large urban school districts are still limited. The purpose of this multiple empirical case study was to explore the instructional factors that contributed to achievement in reading for students in Grades 3 and 4 at …


New Teacher Isolation And Its Relationship To Teacher Attrition, David S. Sleppin Jan 2009

New Teacher Isolation And Its Relationship To Teacher Attrition, David S. Sleppin

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Studies suggest that many promising new teachers who experience isolation do not reach their full potential and may leave the teaching profession prematurely. Accordingly, the purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between the experience of isolation among new teachers and the potential for teacher attrition in an urban school district in the northeastern U.S. Grounded in constructivist theory, the phenomenological research design examined in-depth interview data collected from 8 new public elementary school teachers with three or less years experience. A coding procedure began by extracting key phrases and statements from the raw data and reduced information …


Factors Affecting Retention Of Veteran Classroom Teachers: A Q -Method Study, Theresa Hollingsworth Hafen Corry Jan 2009

Factors Affecting Retention Of Veteran Classroom Teachers: A Q -Method Study, Theresa Hollingsworth Hafen Corry

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Teacher attrition compromises efforts to provide a quality teacher in every classroom, and attrition brings high financial and organizational costs to school districts. Yet, there are few studies on retention of veteran teachers. Within a framework of economic, organization, and attrition theories, the purpose of this study was to provide a clearer focus on factors that contribute to the retention of veteran teachers using Q-methodology. The independent variables were 49 participants from a large school district in the southwest United States. The dependent variable was the Q-sample of multiple factors. Using previous literature, a concourse was developed. The P-sample of …


Comparing Rural Parent And Teacher Perspectives Of Parental Involvement: A Mixed Methods Study, Ann C. Stout Jan 2009

Comparing Rural Parent And Teacher Perspectives Of Parental Involvement: A Mixed Methods Study, Ann C. Stout

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Parents and teachers have differing perspectives of parental involvement which presents a barrier to the development of effective parental involvement. This mixed-method, sequential, exploratory study of parents and teachers in rural school districts sought to identify, compare, and analyze these divergent parental involvement perspectives. A sample of 122 parents and 21 certified teachers from 3 rural elementary schools were first surveyed using parallel questions from Epstein's School and family partnerships parent (or teacher) questionnaire (SFP). Independent-sample t-tests of SFP scales confirmed parental involvement perspectives of parents and teachers differed significantly. Survey data was analyzed descriptively and identified 5 specific topics …


The Relationship Between Flexible Reading Groups And Reading Achievement In Elementary School Students, Gretchen E. H. Schlag Jan 2009

The Relationship Between Flexible Reading Groups And Reading Achievement In Elementary School Students, Gretchen E. H. Schlag

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Despite the current emphasis on differentiating instruction to accommodate individual student learning needs, most reading instruction is taught primarily in static small groups or whole group settings. However, the use of flexible reading groups for reading instruction allows students to be appropriately challenged and avoids labeling a student's reading readiness as stagnant. This study examines the relationship between flexible reading groups and reading achievement of 130 fifth grade students in one elementary school. The theoretical base for the research is grounded in the constructivist theory as supported by Vygotsky and Bruner. In this quasi-experimental quantitative research study, the effect of …


Survey Study Of The Relationship Between Parents' And Teachers' Perceptions Of What Constitutes Effective School -To -Home Communications, Jill L. Murphy Jan 2009

Survey Study Of The Relationship Between Parents' And Teachers' Perceptions Of What Constitutes Effective School -To -Home Communications, Jill L. Murphy

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Even though guidelines at a suburban elementary school in Georgia were in place for teachers regarding frequency and methods of parent communication, it was unclear if these methods were being used consistently and effectively. Research has shown that effective communication increases student achievement, but there is a lack of research examining communication preferences of teachers and parents. Therefore, this study evaluated current practices by comparing parents' and teachers' perceptions of what constitutes effective school-to-home communications. The researcher administered questionnaires to a random sample of teachers and parents of 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade students to compare their perceptions of the …


The Relationship Between Instructional Delivery And Academic Motivation Of Included Elementary School Students With Special Needs, Daniele L. Kass Jan 2009

The Relationship Between Instructional Delivery And Academic Motivation Of Included Elementary School Students With Special Needs, Daniele L. Kass

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Federal and local school system reports demonstrate an academic achievement gap in inclusive classrooms between students with and without disabilities, prompting attention to alternative instructional practices that support motivation and performance of included students. The purpose of this concurrent nested mixed method study was to fill a void in the literature and explore the impact of interdisciplinary thematic instruction on the motivation levels and performance outcomes of 6 included 5th-grade elementary students with special needs. A multiple case study design guided observations and interviews of 3 participants receiving interdisciplinary, theme-based instruction and 3 participants who continued to receive the traditional, …


Perceptions Of Recess And The Effects Of A Morning Recess Break On The Oral Reading Fluency Of Second Grade Students, Joy M. Walker Jan 2009

Perceptions Of Recess And The Effects Of A Morning Recess Break On The Oral Reading Fluency Of Second Grade Students, Joy M. Walker

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

A recent trend in schools has been to reduce or eliminate recess. The assumption behind this elimination is that less recess time provides more opportunities for learning and hence, better learning outcomes. However, little research has examined the effects of this assumption, and little is known about the relationship between recess and learning. The purpose of this mixed method quasi-experimental study was to test the massed versus distributed practice theory and the cognitive immaturity theory, and to gain a better understanding of recess and its implications for learning. The quantitative question was designed to determine whether segmenting instructional time with …


Listen To Me! An Exploration Of The Students' Voices Regarding Homework, Gladys Landing-Corretjer Jan 2009

Listen To Me! An Exploration Of The Students' Voices Regarding Homework, Gladys Landing-Corretjer

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Research on students' voices and perspectives regarding homework is absent from the literature. This qualitative case study explored the perspectives of 5th and 6th grade students and ten teachers' perceptions regarding homework completion. The literature review revealed 3 trends in homework, including support homework, support against homework, and homework reform. However, most of this research considers the adults' perspective. The researcher administered 46 questionnaires and conducted 12 in depth interviews using a stratified purposive sample and extreme case sampling. The questionnaires and interviews educed the participants' perceptions and practices regarding homework. The students represented 4 distinct groups: English language learners, …


The Impact Of Collaborative Analysis Of Student Work On Student Achievement Among Third Graders In The Area Of Writing: An Action Research Study, Jami A. Lee Jan 2009

The Impact Of Collaborative Analysis Of Student Work On Student Achievement Among Third Graders In The Area Of Writing: An Action Research Study, Jami A. Lee

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Georgia Writing Assessment scores revealed that there were third grade students at an elementary school in rural Southeast Georgia struggling to meet the state standards. This pre-experimental, action research study examined the impact of collaborative analysis of student work on student achievement among third graders in the area of writing through a one-group pretest-posttest design. The pretest phase of this quantitative study was comprised of the collection of scored student writing samples followed by professional development training for teacher participants on collaborative analysis of student work. The posttest phase of the study included the collection of scored student writing samples. …