Education Commons^™

Instructional Strategies Designed To Motivate Reluctant Primary Readers, Kimberly Dawn Perkins

All Graduate Projects

The purpose of this project was to design and collect instructional strategies to help reluctant primary readers understand that reading can be a pleasurable experience. There are many students who are unmotivated to read. Research has shown that students should engage in meaningful literacy activities and see that there is a purpose to read. The activities collected for this project can be used to supplement the reading program used in the regular classroom. Many of these activities can be adapted to different content areas and learning styles. The Essential Academic Learning Requirements were used as a guideline for gathering the …

Seeing History Through Literature: An Interdisciplinary Unit On World War Ii, William White

All Graduate Projects

The purpose of this project was to design and develop a model interdisciplinary unit combining English and history at the junior year. To accomplish this purpose, current research and literature on integration was reviewed. Additionally, learning objectives, teaching strategies, educational activities and instructional materials were developed and adapted. The curriculum focuses on World War II. It should serve as a possible example of how integration might work to effectively facilitate an understanding of history through literature and literature through history.

Wolves And Bears: An Interdisciplinary Activity Guide For Grades 3-5, Susan L. Thomas

All Graduate Projects

A popular set of "Discovery Boxes" are used by educators across North Central Washington. These boxes are administered by the U.S. Forest Service and focus on such themes as wolves, bears, fire, plants and forests. These boxes are available to be checked out to educators for two-week periods, and reach approximately 9,000 students annually. Each box contains "hands-on" props which enhance the learning of each theme. Some of the boxes have activity guides in them to assist the educator in teaching the theme and thus using the box to its full potential. Two of the most popular boxes, the wolf …

A Survival Skills Handbook For Columbia Basin Alternative High School Students, James L. Yonko

All Graduate Projects

The purpose of this project was to develop a survival skills handbook to benefit students at Columbia Basin Alternative High School, Moses Lake, Washington. To accomplish this purpose, a review of current related research and literature was conducted. Additionally, related information obtained from selected schools/districts and from a survey of participating students was also analyzed.

Integrating The New California State Science Standards With Successful Middle School Curriculum Methodologies, Mary Catherine Ahearn, Kathleen Ryan Been, Paula Reynolds

Theses Digitization Project

No abstract provided.

Integrating Literature And California History In Fourth Grade Social Studies, Kristen Gayle Duffett

Theses Digitization Project

No abstract provided.

Using Poetry And Metaphor To Learn Across The Curriculum, Stanley Wayne Brown

Theses Digitization Project

No abstract provided.

Serving Esol Recipients In A Welfare To Work Program, Dawn Elizabeth Jackman

MA TESOL Collection

Supported Work Program is a Welfare to Work program designed to serve “the hardest to serve” Welfare recipients. The primary goal of the program is to assist recipients in finding and retaining work.

This paper draws upon research done while I was a Basic Skills Instructor for a Supported Work Program in Charlestown, MA. Originally hired as a Reading/Writing teacher, my responsibilities included teaching basic brush up of English Grammar, Reading Comprehension Skills and Writing. I soon found that my classroom was comprised of a wide spectrum of people including many ESOL welfare recipients. The inclusion of ESOL participants was …

The Transition To A Project-Based Curriculum, Cheryl Hoffman

MA TESOL Collection

This paper examines the initial stages in transforming a grammar-based English as a Second Language curriculum into a project-based one that aims to develop learners’ communicative competence. Included is a definition of project-based learning and communicative competence. The background and setting of the curriculum project are described. The emergence of project-based courses and the transition to these courses is also discussed. Implications for future curriculum projects are considered in terms of managing change within an English language program.

Adapting The C-L/Cll Approach To A Conventional Textbook Setting: A Novice Teacher’S Reality, Laura Fleher

MA TESOL Collection

This paper is an analysis of the Counseling-Learning/Community Language Learning Approach’s adaptability in a conventional textbook setting. My second internship experience which takes place in a college summer ESL program is the testing ground for my development as a novice C-L/CLL teacher. Questions, doubts, and concerns about the value of a new and an old teaching method are discussed. The importance of distinguishing between approach, method, and technique is advocated. Utilizing the classic cycle of activities is necessary to a novice teacher’s internalization of the C-L philosophy. However, the conventional teaching method, the textbook, is familiar and valued by students …

Defining Humanistic Philosophy, Pedagogy And Teaching Practices In Relation To English Language Teaching, Robert G. Emigh

MA TESOL Collection

The intentions of this study was to arrive at a better understanding of how teachers define humanistic education, and how this understanding informs and influences their approaches to language teaching. The first section of this paper overviews the thoughts of three prominent humanistic educators. This is meant to serve as a grounding for the second part of the paper which reports and analyses the results of a study of eleven practicing EFL and ESL teachers. The teachers responded to a questionnaire and submitted to an interview regarding how they viewed humanistic education and how those views translated into teaching practices.

Closure: A Forgotten Aspect Of English As A Second Language Teaching Pedagogy, Connie J. Douglass

MA TESOL Collection

I realized early in my teaching career, I didn’t know how to begin or end a class. I quickly learned how to build community in a classroom by using ice breaker activities to provide a sense of my adult learners needs, wants and dreams. When it was time for the class to end, I had no sense for what my adult multi-cultural students were thinking or feeling. Generally speaking we (my students and I) would plan to have a party or meet somewhere for drinks. No one would show up. Usually I would never see these students again. Not only …

Internet Users’ Manual For English Language Teaching Professionals: Enjoyable Internet Understanding, Jack Bailey

MA TESOL Collection

This paper serves as an overview of the Internet and its resources available to English Language Teaching professionals. The intended audience is both instructors new to Internet technologies as well as those well versed in the Net but looking for further resources. Initial sections give the reader a brief overview of the Internet, its history, and its most prominent component parts including e-mail, mailing lists, newsgroups and chat rooms. Primary emphasis is placed on the categorizing and description of key web sites most useful to English Language instructors and administrators. Each site listing contains addresses (URLs), general site descriptions and …

International Business And Culture Course Development And Teacher Growth, Deborah Lang Bainbridge

MA TESOL Collection

This paper describes the development process of an International Business and Culture Course for a new certificate program at the Colorado International Education and Training Institute (CIETI). I was hired for the specific purpose of designing this course. This paper is a compilation of some of the resources I’ve collected, experiences of what worked and what did not work, learning and teaching ideas I’ve incorporated from my course work at SIT, and my personal values and beliefs. My keen interest is in emotional intelligence and I have used it as a unifying theme to explain why I have chosen to …

A Handbook For Hosting A District-Wide Festival For Literature And The Arts, Clayton Shane Wilson

Theses Digitization Project

No abstract provided.

California Women's History: A Teacher Resource Book For The Elementary Social Studies Classroom, Susan Renee Posiviata

Theses Digitization Project

No abstract provided.

Learning About Computers, Daniel Clayton Jones

Theses Digitization Project

No abstract provided.

A Study Of Efficacy Beliefs For Urban And Suburban School Teachers Trained In A Brain-Based Model Of Instruction, Linda Crescione

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

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Block Scheduling: A Comparison Of Block Scheduling And Traditional Scheduling And Its Relationship To Student Achievement, Student Satisfaction And Teacher Methodology In A Junior-Senior High School In New Jersey, Thomas Matarazzo

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

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Math Wars: The Politics Of Curriculum, Raymond Johnson

Presidential Scholars Theses (1990 – 2006)

There is an ongoing battle in mathematics education, a battle sometimes so fierce that some people call it the "math wars". Americans have seen many changes and proposed changes in their educational system in the last fifty years, but few have stirred such debate, publicity, and criticism as have the changes in mathematics education. We will first look at the history of the math wars and take time to examine previous attempts to change mathematics education in America. Second, we will assess the more recent efforts in mathematics education reform. Lastly, we will make some predictions for the future of …

Web-Based Courses In Higher Education: Creating Active Learning Environments, Marilyn Ruth Eggers

Dissertations

Problem. As more and more adults seek to continue their education, alternate methods of course delivery Will be required to meet their needs. Web-based courses allow students to learn at times and places that are convenient for them. There is concern, however, about whether or not such courses can create effective, active learning experiences, and whether or not knowledge can be socially constructed in online interactions. In order for higher education to provide exemplary online courses, it is important to identify necessary elements and instructional strategies to create virtual learning environments. The goals of this study were to determine …

Technology Partnership Curriculum Initiative: A Descriptive Case Study Of Its History, Development, And Implementation, Ingrid Wright-Jones

Dissertations

Problem

Curricular reform has a pathetic history. Curriculum documents, some of the major tools of reformers, have had a minor effect on transforming education because the power of pedagogy has been ignored (Cuban, 1993). Teachers in the Seventh-day Adventist (SDA) system voiced similar concerns about curriculum documents. Additionally, they felt that their 2-4-day in-service training did not adequately prepare them to implement curricular changes. This initiative, aimed at restructuring both the content and process of teaching, was to be implemented in a distance-learning pilot project in eight one-teacher schools.

Purpose

The purpose of this study was to: (1) define the …

Academic Security Education : The Development Of An Industry Based Security Management Curriculum, Layne M. Hesse

Theses : Honours

This study examined the education profiles and skills and knowledge required for security managers conducted through an educational needs analysis of the security field. Little information is currently available about security education in Australia and there is no centralised source of information about such education. There is also comparatively little information exchanged across institutions, government and industry. A survey using the interview method obtained and analysed the opinions and perceptions of security skills and knowledge from the sample population. The aim of this study was to contribute to the security field by exploring and analysing the skills and knowledge required …

Effectiveness Of The "Baby Think It Over" Program On Adolescents' Contraceptive And Child-Rearing Attitudes, Stephanie Ann Johnson

Masters Theses

An increasing number of high schools in the United States have begun to use the "Baby Think It Over" doll as part of their curriculum in certain classes. This study examined the effectiveness of this doll on influencing 46 male and female adolescents' attitudes and behaviors regarding pregnancy, sexual activity, and contraceptives. Five specific subscales were developed to measure the teens' contraceptive attitudes and behaviors before and after using the doll regarding their feelings about becoming pregnant, understanding/comprehension of the responsibilities of child-rearing, appreciation of the impact of child-bearing on their lives/future, and attitudes toward premarital sex. Also, a qualitative …

Council In The Classroom: New Ways Of Knowing, Being And Interacting, Ximena Allub

MA TESOL Collection

This paper examines my learnings on Council, an ancient form of communication, currently being revisited and remolded to suit modern needs. In this vein I explored its application in a school environment. I describe here a year-long study of Council that took me to both Argentina and the United States. The focus is primarily on a different form of classroom management and its impact on students and their learning.

In chapter one, I give an introduction to Council, outlining its history, and providing a brief explanation of the philosophy behind it.

In chapter two, I look at my experience as …

Timed Conversation: One Routine For Engaging Large Classes Of Non-Motivated Learners In Meaningful Oral Communication, Bradley J. Deacon

MA TESOL Collection

This paper will explore an activity called “Timed Conversation” that I use in large classes of relatively unmotivated first and second year non-language majors in a Japanese university setting. Timed Conversation is designed to help students to communicate in native-like and incrementally longer sustained dialogues in the target language. In the activity, the students interact with many partners and practice conversations while practicing various language expressions. In every lesson over the course of a semester they speak in conversations about a number of topics for a set limit of time. The goal is to be able to speak more fluently …

Traditional Vs. Non-Traditional Blocks Of Time In Relationship To Teaching And Learning: An Independent Professional Project, Susan W. Chilson

MA TESOL Collection

This Independent Professional Project reflects a discussion about the use of traditional and non-traditional blocks in their relationship with teaching and learning. It reflects the ways in which teaching and learning might lead to a better outcome if the non-traditional blocks were implemented. It addresses the issues of learning styles and the perceptions that revolve around them.

An overview of visits to several schools across the country is included to offer insight into what the various movements in teaching and learning are in different schools. There are as many similarities throughout the schools in the country as there are differences. …

Integration Of Faith And Learning In Christian Higher Education : Professional Development Of Teachers And Classroom Implementation, Constance Chibuzo Nwosu

Dissertations

Problem. Few studies have focused on effective professional development programs that enhance faith-learning implementation in the Christian higher education classroom, and little has been documented about what integration of faith and learning actually looks or sounds like in Christian higher education classrooms.

Purpose. This study had four purposes:

1. To describe the training processes used for preparing teachers in Christian higher education for implementing EFL in the classroom.
2. To compare these methodologies with Jesus’ training methodologies and research-based professional development programs.
3. To understand how teachers in Christian higher education classrooms defined IFL.
4. To identify and document some exemplary practices of faith …

Teacher Efficacy And Behavior: Their Relationship And Impact On Student Learning, Linda Diane Avery

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

The purposes of this study were to explore the relationships between teacher efficacy and changes in teacher behavior and student learning espoused by the standards-based reform movement and to examine the impact of a curriculum innovation on student learning and teacher efficacy The study was designed to target sophisticated pedagogical behavior associated with setting high learner expectations.;The context for the research was a federally funded project to develop and implement model lessons in elementary social studies in an urban setting. The sample was comprised of 25 experimental and 17 comparison teachers. Instrumentation included two measures of teacher efficacy, two measures …

Including Elders' Voices: A Model For Gerontology Curriculum Design In Higher Education, Marilyn Rose Gelish-Gugliucci

Educational Studies Dissertations

This study has proposed a new model for gerontology curriculum design. The model involves elders at two levels: designing gerontology courses/programs and participating in the students' learning experiences… The proposed curriculum model is framed within progressive and confluent curriculum ideologies: thereby, supporting experiential learning, personal growth, integration of attitudes, feelings, emotions, and relevance.