Education Commons^™

A Review Of The Financial Issues Facing Child Care In The United States, Carol L. Kringle

Graduate Research Papers

Jerlean Daniel (1990), a member of the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) Governing Board, and the 1990 chair of NAEYC's Public Policy Committee, offered the following analogy of the child care industry to congress. If you hear nothing else today, please take with you the horror of an industry drowning. We are an industry on the brink of disaster. For years teachers in child care have subsidized the industry with their low wages. They have reached a point where they have nothing left to give but themselves Unfortunately, as evidenced by national turnover rates of 41 …

A Preferred Vision For Administering Elementary Schools : A Reflective Essay, Janie M. Adams

Graduate Research Papers

Some of the articles and books that are referred to in the body of this paper are written by African- Americans about the plight of our African-American children in yesterday's, today's and tomorrow's schools. In writing this paper I address some basic needs for all children. Yet of most pressing concern to me are the African-American student and other students of color. Brown versus Topeka, Kansas was in 1954, but in the eyes of many African-Americans separate but equal is alive and well. With the prospect of a voucher system looming on the horizon it is being driven home even …

Listening Comprehension Analysis In A Midwestern Community College, Mary M. Conrad

Graduate Research Papers

At the post secondary level, listening comprehension is one of the most needed and least taught of the communication skills. This study compares whether a direct teaching method.is more effective than an indirect method for improving listening comprehension. Twenty-four secretarial students in two business communications classes were the subjects of the study. There were fifteen females in group 1 and eight females and one male in group 2. The Watson-Barker Listening Test was used to pre- and post-test subjects' listening comprehension.

Group 1 received listening instruction via a direct method; group 2 received instruction via an indirect method. T-test analysis …

Reading In The Preschool, Mary C. Simons

Graduate Research Papers

Reading is the process of getting meaning from, or making sense of print (Anderson, 1969; Thorne, 1988). As quoted in Gallasch (1982), Goodman said "The reader starts with a graphic display, printed or handwritten, and if he is successful, he ends with meaning, a reconstruction of the writer's message" (p. 19 ). The critical component in reading is comprehension (Bromley, 1988; Goodman, 1982; Thorne, 1988). It is not enough to recognize or name a word. "The task is to get the underlying structures, to get at the meaning, and to constantly keep the meaning in mind" (Goodman, 1971, p. 7).

A Preferred Vision For Administering Secondary Schools: A Reflective Essay, David W. Sharp

Graduate Research Papers

Father Theodore Hesburgh, former president of the University of Notre Dame, once said. "The very essence of leadership is (that) you have a vision. It has to be a vision you articulate clearly and forcefully on every occasion. You can't blow an uncertain trumpet" (Bowen. 1987. p. 68). I have a strong vision that will help guide my performance as an administrator. This vision is the result of an educational administrative awareness developed through the integration of information from many sources. These sources include: extensive educational training. experience in the public educational system. my own ethical standards. and a personal …

Effective Instruction In Developing Strategic Readers, Linda S. Jermeland

Graduate Research Papers

A recent trend in educational research is looking into a child's own knowledge about reading. This would include cognitive operations such as information storage and retrieval, planning, regulating, monitoring and evaluating (Moore, 1982). This was brought about by the return to cognitive and developmental psychology in the 1970's when researchers were investigating how children learn to read. It was hoped that a sequence of skills associated with successful reading could be identified. This would in turn lead to implications for types of interventions needed in children's learning.

Intergenerational Education, Ellen Johnson

Graduate Research Papers

Jane Addams. famous social reformer. stated in Democracy and Social Ethics: The Democratic ideal demands of the school that it gives a child's own experience a social value: that it shall teach him to direct his own activities and adjust them to those of other people's . . . . We are impatient with the schools which lay stress on reading and writing. expecting them to rest upon the assumption that all knowledge and interest must be brought to the children through the medium of books. Such an assumption fails to give the child any clue to the life about …

Recent Research On Appropriate Strategies To Facilitate And Enhance Reading Comprehension Instruction Primary Level, Linda Kennedy

Graduate Research Papers

At a time when literacy is more important than ever, national attention has refocused on reading to insure that all children learn this critical skill. Through the years, the entire realm of reading has been considered extremely complex and even controversial. In no other area in the whole field of education is there more partisanship than in the area of the teaching of reading. Samuels and Farstrup (1992) stated that after years of having more educational research dedicated to the subject than to any other, there is still no precise answer resolving the question of how to teach a child …

Effect Of Expository Writing In Mathematics With Middle School Sixth Grade Students, Rebecca J. Dickinson

Graduate Research Papers

The effects of expository writing (a writing to learn approach) on achievement in a math unit on fractions was investigated. Two groups of intact sixth grade mathematics classes (N = 44) were chosen and the treatment of expository writing was randomly assigned to one group. The control group received direct instruction for the unit on addition and subtraction of fractions while the treatment group practiced expository writing (a how-to descriptive writing) plus direct instruction. The study lasted four weeks. The same summative post test of the fraction unit was given to both groups when the unit was complete. The null …

Voice Technologies In Advanced Computer Systems, Jodie M. Cone

Graduate Research Papers

Recently there has been a surge of interest using voice technologies in advanced workstations. The motivation for voice is its role as the primary channel of human-to-human communication, which ties in with current research in which computers are used to facilitate group problem solving, in enhanced user interfaces, and office computing. Taken broadly, the use of speech as a command and data channel may require digital recording and playback techniques, speech recognition, text-to-speech synthesis, and telephone interface equipment. The big payoff will be to build systems, using these technologies, to allow computers to become a part of the infrastructure of …

The Relationship Among Sex-Role Categories, Self-Esteem, And Achievement: A Preliminary Study Of Taiwanese Youth, Chun-Hwei Chang

Graduate Research Papers

The purpose of the study was to investigate different levels of self-esteem and attitude toward achievement in individuals of varying sex-role categories: masculinity, femininity, and androgyny. The subjects for this study were 125 Taiwanese college freshmen, 68 males and 57 females, at the Tunghai University in Taiwan. Three scales were used in this study: the Bem Sex-role Inventory, the Coopersmith Self-esteem Inventory (CSEI), and the Attitude toward Achievement Inventory. The results of this study indicated that the masculinity-category subjects had both higher self-esteem and greater self-concept of ability toward achievement than the non-masculinity-category subjects. Also, there were statistically significant differences …

Status Of Diagnosis Of Childhood Depression, Kay L. Erland

Graduate Research Papers

Affective disorders in children were not recognized by professional clinicians until the beginning of the twentieth century. It was 1960 before a major textbook of psychiatry included a chapter on childhood depression (Cytryn & McKnew, 1979). To many, the idea of a child being depressed is contrary to images of childhood as a happy, carefree time (Lasko, 1986). Yet, children do show unhappy feelings in many different ways as they mature from infancy to adolescence (Epanchin, 1987). It has been estimated that 20% of the school-age population have some symptoms of depression at some time (Epstein & Cullinan, 1986).

A Personal Vision For Quality Leadership: A Reflective Essay, Wendy R. Cruse

Graduate Research Papers

Educational administration of today presents many challenges for both new and veteran administrators. Many of these challenges have evolved in response to federal, state, and local pressures. Today's administrators can no longer be blind to these influential agencies, but must be visional strategic planners in order to effectively handle the problems they are faced with today.

Early Childhood Education In Japan Compared With Developmentally Appropriate Practice Guidelines In The United States, Nancy B. Gaies

Graduate Research Papers

The purpose and content of early childhood education in a culture reflect the culture and serve to maintain it. Also, they reveal the culture's perceptions of childhood and its expectations for its people. Each young child represents a fresh chance for· teachers to mold an ideal person for that culture. The content of early childhood education is created by interaction among the history of the culture, the present conditions in the culture, and the perceived future of the culture. An historical perspective is therefore important.

Attitudes And Understandings: The Meaning Of School To At-Risk Ninth Grade Students In A Midwestern Urban Area, Judith Brush Griffith

Graduate Research Papers

When students in small urban or rural areas are identified as at-risk, they are often visualized as possessing the same traits as at-risk students in very large metropolitan areas. This visualization is often based on both traditional quantitative studies and on qualitative interpretive research. In this study, based primarily on interpretive descriptive models, at-risk ninth-grade students from a small Midwestern urban area were interviewed to determine their attitudes and understandings about school. The data collected represents a highly localized view and indicates that these students' views seem to coincide with traditional values and beliefs.

Integrating Writing Into A Chapter One Reading Program In Grades Seven And Eight, Avis C. Grundman

Graduate Research Papers

The Chapter One reading program has traditionally consisted of teaching and re-teaching of isolated skills and has included much segmented reading. The small amount of writing that has taken place has been in the form of short answer or fill-in-the blanks activities.

Nurturing Student Responses Through Read Aloud Experiences, Linda A. Pitt

Graduate Research Papers

The public is concerned about the decline of reading scores. National reports label the United States a nation at risk educationally. Further complicating matters, many students who can read are choosing not to read, either for information or pleasure.

Extending The Literature Base Of A Language Arts Classroom Using The Theme Of Survival, Mary A. Rosburg

Graduate Research Papers

The general public in the United States recently has expressed much concern about low literacy levels. Many Americans have not developed language abilities that afford successful functioning as adults. Current data support this concern : Approximately one out of ten adults cannot read well enough to fill out tax forms, read a menu, or heed warning labels on medicine bottles. Surveys suggest that at least 50 percent of the unemployed lack basic reading and writing skills to secure a job (Cornett, Blankenship, 1990).

The Teaching Of Higher Order Thinking Skills To Middle Level Students, Jo Ann Young

Graduate Research Papers

One of the major challenges that faces teachers is to unlock the intellectual potential of each and every student. In the world today, people more and more need to be able to think critically. The purpose of this paper is to analyze and synthesize current literature relative to the teaching of higher order thinking skills as a process to be taught to middle level children. Also included in this paper are the results of a study conducted to test how often teachers of a middle school use higher level thinking questions during their class discussions. The six teachers selected for …

Assessing Children's Emerging Literacy Through Anecdotal Records, Reva R. Arends

Graduate Research Papers

Implementing the whole language concept into an instructional program involves a change in the assessment of student growth. With the focus on student involvement in the language processes to nurture language abilities, the traditional formal measures, usually standardized tests, are inappropriate. They report in quantitative terms a child's mastery of language fragments. Little information is acquired about how a child creates meaning within the structure of a whole unit--a story or poem

Learning Disabilities: Educational Considerations, Juana F. Domínguez

Graduate Research Papers

The purpose of this paper is to review the literature on learning disabilities so a more appropriate approach to the education of children with learning disabilities can be utilized in Ecuador. The term learning disabilities may be applied to any learner who fails to benefit from the curriculum in which he/she has been placed. Moreover, this paper presents many of the important facts for understanding children with leaning disabilities and dealing with these children in school. However, the information found in this paper represents just a portion of the knowledge base about learning disabilities.

A Comparison Of Cognitive Abilities Test Scores Of Second Graders From Four Different Preschool Backgrounds, Judy A. Conner

Graduate Research Papers

This study focused around a research question involving middle and upper socioeconomic status children: Do public school second graders who previously attended Montessori preschools demonstrate higher cognitive abilities (as measured by the Cognitive Abilities Test) than second graders who attended traditional preschools or did not attend preschool? Although there was a wide variability of scores within each group, t-tests analyses revealed significant differences favoring preschool attenders when compared to those who did not attend preschool, and for Montessori preschoolers when compared to the other groups.

The Importance Of Teaching Problem Solving, Edward Dvorak

Graduate Research Papers

Each day mathematics teachers and their students go through the daily routine of solving basic textbook mathematical problems. The teacher discusses the basic concept that is being studied and then assigns a number of problems. The assignment is generally limited to performing algorithmic computations in a rote manner. Problem solving is limited or nonexistant.

Distance Learning Via Interactive Instructional Television, Darrell Gene Fremont

Graduate Research Papers

Our information-based society places a tremendous amount of reliance on telecommunications technologies to move information quickly over long distances. Everyday sophisticated networks provide instant, updated data to businessmen, government officials and other professionals from coast to coast and from continent to continent. Our homes, schools, and work places are wired and equipped to receive long distance information by means of audio, video, and electronic data transmission (Brand, 1988).

Extending Children's Literacy Through A Thematic Unit, Sally A. Hamilton

Graduate Research Papers

This paper will present the rationale for extending the literature base of a reading and language arts instructional program. Implications for instruction, based on a review of professional literature, will be discussed and then applied to the development of a fifth-grade unit based on the theme of memories. Literature-based units provide children with many opportunities to engage in the functions of language, thus strengthening their thinking-language abilities.

The Effect Of Cooperative Learning On Student Social Attitudes, Mary Hampton

Graduate Research Papers

The effects of cooperative learning on student social attitudes was investigated in two parts. The first part presented a literature review which focused on the effect cooperative learning has had on social acceptance among various ethnic groups in culturally diverse classrooms and on mainstreamed mentally handicapped students. The results showed that, in general, cooperative learning as an instructional strategy does have positive effects on the formation of cross-racial friendships, increases the acceptance of differences among ethnically diverse students, and promotes positive attitudes among normal-progress students and those who have been mainstreamed due to handicaps. The second part was an investigation …

A Comparison Of Student Time On Task Between Self Selected And Teacher Assigned Writing Topics, Janeen M. Jackson

Graduate Research Papers

The purpose of this study was to examine the amount of time on task by students who chose their own writing topics as compared to the amount of time on task by students who wrote on teacher assigned topics. Thirtyeight 7th graders from two intact language arts classes were the subjects in this study. The time on task was logged daily and measured in minutes spent prewriting, writing, revising and conferencing. At-test indicated that there was a significant difference in time on task (p < .001) between paragraphs in which students were allowed to self select topics and those in which the topic was teacher assigned. The students spent more time on self selected topics. The results of this study are significant to teachers of writing. When maximum writing time or practice in writing are desired outcomes, students should be allowed to self select topics.

Learning Styles: Assessing Our Student Needs, Joanna Oppenheimer Morgan

Graduate Research Papers

The research of learning styles and their importance in education has been investigated for several decades. Educators and researchers know that all children can learn, and know that all students learn in different ways. Recent research has substantiated and validated much of what we knew about learning. These investigations have also produced new information about how the effects of sociological, environmental, emotional, physiological, and cognitive preferences affect the achievement of individual students (Dunn, Beaudry and Klanas, 1989).

Meeting State Mandates For Gifted And Talented : A Survey Of Iowa Undergraduate Teacher Preparation Programs, Judy Carol Davison

Graduate Research Papers

The purpose of this study was to identify the methods through which undergraduate teacher education programs in the State of Iowa are meeting the competency requirement as related to the education of the gifted and talented. The instrument used to accomplish the assessment was a survey questionnaire that was distributed to each of the 30 Iowa colleges and universities that offer teacher preparation programs.