Education Commons^™

Where's The Rigor? A Study Of Direct Instruction Vs. Inquiry-Based Learning In Math Education, Brianna Rae Warner

Honors Projects

Research suggests that there is an absence of rigor in high school mathematics classes. Since curricula is often used to guide instruction, an analysis of direct instruction and inquiry-based learning curricula was conducted to investigate how rigor is integrated into these divergent approaches for presenting content to high school mathematics students, based on the expectation of rigor aligned with the Common Core State Standards regarding how (1) conceptual understanding, (2) procedural skill and fluency, and (3) applications are developed in the text. The results of the analysis show that neither style for writing curriculum is in alignment with the CCSS. …

A Case Study Of Communities Of Practice In Schools, Stephanie Ann Knipp

Education Dissertations

Abstract

This research is an examination of a community of practice, how it generates teacher social capital, and the implications for school leadership. Grounded in situated learning theory and social capital theory, this case study of teachers in a small school analyzes how communities of practice can generate teacher social capital, and how school leaders can help foster its growth. Situated learning theory is creating meaning from the real activities of daily living, and its implications for educational research and application are extensive. Developed by anthropologist Jean Lave and computer scientist Etienne Wenger in the 1990s, situated learning theory is …

Inquiry In Inquiry: A Classification Of The Learning Theories Underlying Inquiry-Based Undergraduate Number Theory Texts, Rebecca L. Butler

Honors Projects

While undergraduate inquiry-based texts in number theory share similar approaches with respect to learning as the embodiment of professional practice, this does not entail that these texts all operate from the same fundamental understanding of what it means to learn mathematics. In this paper, the instructional design of several texts of the aforementioned types are analyzed to assess the theory of learning under which they operate. From this understanding of the different theories of learning employed in an inquiry-based mathematical setting, one can come to understand the popular model of what it is to learn number theory in a meaningful …

Student Perception Of Digital Technology Usage In Higher Education Classrooms At Seattle Pacific University, Jason E. Profit

Education Dissertations

Abstract

Student Perception of Digital Technology Usage in Higher

Education Classrooms at Seattle Pacific University

By Jason Profit

Chairperson of the Dissertation Committee:

Dr. Nyaradzo Mvududu

School of Education

Since 2004, EDUCAUSE has been assessing the use of digital devices in higher education classrooms. Seattle Pacific University (SPU) had never participated in an ECAR Student Technology Survey until April, 2017. This study aimed to establish a baseline understanding of how SPU undergraduate students compare to other small, private, liberal arts institutions in regard to technology usage in the classroom. The broader purpose of this study was to add to the …

A Meta-Analysis Of The Effects Of Reflective Self-Assessment On Academic Achievement In Primary And Secondary Populations, Jeffrey James Youde

Education Dissertations

Recent empirical research studies indicate that reflective self-assessment as a classroom approach can have a positive impact on student achievement. Reflective self-assessment, a form of metacognition, allows a student to think about past, current, and future learning performance. Although several discrete empirical studies have supported such hypotheses, a quantified exploration and summary of the relationship between classroom techniques of reflective self-assessment and student academic achievement is needed. The results of the current study, a meta-analysis of surveyed empirical studies from the past 26 years, indicate that reflective self-assessment has an overall effect size of .46 on academic achievement across grade …

The Impact Of Collaborative Strategic Reading On Esl International Students’ Reading Comprehension And Metacognitive Awareness In College, Fatima Benlyazid

Education Dissertations

Many ESL international students struggle with academic reading, which hinders their success in American colleges. Collaborative Strategic Reading (CSR) is a multi-component approach that trains struggling readers to apply a set of cognitive and metacognitive strategies to enhance their reading comprehension and content area reading. This quasi-experimental nonequivalent control group pretest-posttest study aims to evaluate the effect of CSR on ESL international students' reading comprehension and their metacognitive awareness in college. The researcher employed Degrees of Reading Power (DRP) and Metacognitive Awareness of Reading Strategies Inventory (MARSI) measurement tools to collect the data. Capturing students' perceptions of CSR in the …

The Age Of The Library, Michael Paulus

SPU Works

In 2018, the Seattle Pacific University Library launched a minor in Information Studies. This multidisciplinary program explores the dynamic relationships between information, technology, and people and how our lives are changing in our emerging information and technological environment. Why would a library create such a program, and what does it reveal about the present and future role of the library?

Examining Relationships Between The Wakids Gold Social-Emotional And Cognitive Subtests Of Executive Function And Kindergarten Reading Readiness, Amy J. Wright

Education Dissertations

Executive function skills, which are defined as a person’s ability to regulate behaviors such as attention, working memory, and inhibitory control, play a role in a child’s successful transition from preschool to kindergarten. The purpose of this study was to review and analyze the relationship between executive function in early childhood, as measured by the WaKIDS GOLD^TM social-emotional and cognitive subtests, and early reading readiness. The research design was both correlational and predictive (Gall, Gall, & Borg, 2006). The target population is kindergarteners in a suburban Washington State school district. The study is based on data collected at the …

Educator Mindsets And The Impacts To The Teacher-Student Relationship: An Exploratory Case Study, Tammy Fisher Huson

Education Dissertations

Teacher-student relationships (TSR) have long been demonstrated to have significant impact on student outcomes. There has been far less research, however, focused on identifying the specific mindsets that educators’ hold which influence their actions toward students. As relationships are situated and contextual and qualitative in nature, this case study sought to explore the specific qualities of effective TSR through the perspectives of both educators (n = 31) and students (n = 65) in two alternative schools in Northwest Canada. Staff members in both the middle school and the high school participated in a professional development TSR intervention designed to coach …

Academic Success Indicators Associated With Immediate Postsecondary Enrollment, Alexandria C. Johns

Education Dissertations

The primary aim of this study was to examine the predictive relationship between human capital academic success indicators and student enrollment or non-enrollment in a postsecondary institution or program. For this study, the researcher analyzed academic records, demographic information, and National Student Clearinghouse (NSC) reports from two comprehensive high schools in one school district to address the research question. A direct logistic regression was used to examine the predictors that influenced the decision of high school graduates from the class of 2017 to enroll in a two-year college, technical college, four-year college, or non-enrollment immediately after graduation from high school. …

Using Metacognitive Reflection To Improve Student Learning, Eric Howe

Education Dissertations

The study of art, especially perspective, involves the use of specialized vocabulary words. Vocabulary words can be difficult to comprehend, but when students learn to use the specialized vocabulary or academic language of a subject, the learner is better able to think about the content. While academic language is only a part of a visual art curriculum, students need support from the teacher to learn it. Metacognitive reflection (MR) offers a method to increase student learning of academic language in art specifically, and other subjects in general. Teacher feedback naturally occurs in response to students’ reflections and gives the learner …

The Role Of Hope Among College Students’ Academic Achievement, Esther Choe Penzar

Education Dissertations

First-generation college students historically face barriers to succeed academically in post-secondary education as observed through lower graduation rates, lower GPA, lower rates of persistence in college, and prolonged time to graduate compared to non-FGCS (Cataldi, Bennett, & Chen, 2018; Chen & Carroll, 2005; Ishitani, 2006). Internal factors such as hope and academic self-efficacy have shown to have a distinct and significant impact on academic achievement (Feldman & Kubota, 2015).

In the present research, the relationships between Snyder and colleagues (1991) Trait Hope Scale (THS), Chemers and colleagues’ (2011) Academic Self-Efficacy Scale (ASES) and academic achievement, as measured by self-reported GPA, …

Training School Counselors To Use Motivational Interviewing: How School Counselor Preparation Programs Provide Motivational Interviewing Training, Reagan A. North

Education Dissertations

In a data-driven educational landscape, it is essential that School Counselor Preparation Programs (SCPPs) train School Counselor Trainees (SCTs) to use effective counseling techniques (Goodman-Scott, 2015; Perusse, Poynton, Parzych, & Goodnough, 2015), especially given their high caseloads (ASCA, 2012, 2018b; Astramovich, Hoskins, Gutierrez, & Bartlett, 2013; Moyer, 2011; DeMato & Curcio, 2004). The primary researcher for this study investigated how SCPPs train SCTs to use Motivational Interviewing, an evidence-based counseling style that utilizes person-centered techniques to increase clients’ motivation to make positive changes in their lives (Miller & Rollnick, 2013). The researcher used a qualitative, multiple case study design to …

Interorganizational Collaboration In Education For Community Change: An Exploratory Case Study, Stacy Marie Mehlberg

Education Dissertations

In the fields of business and healthcare, researchers have found that organizations are more successful at serving their clients when they collaboratively share knowledge, resources, and time using a multidisciplinary approach. There is less empirical evidence supporting these interorganizational collaborations (IOCs) in education. In 2013, the Cold Spring School District (CSSD) established an initiative to improve student and community outcomes. To do this, the district created an IOC to guide their work. The purpose of this current study was the exploration of this IOC to better understand how the IOC was developed, supported, and sustained. Through analysis of interviews, surveys, …

School Board Members' Perceptions In Relation To Selected District Demographic Variables, Lisa Truemper Scott

Education Dissertations

The study presented in this dissertation explored the relationship between school board members’ perceptions and selected district demographic variables. Chi-square tests for independence were employed to analyze school board members’ categorical perceptual data and district enrollment size, district urban-centric locale, and district socio-economic status. The findings suggested a significant relationship existed between district enrollment size and district socio-economic status, both with regard to school board members’ prioritization of educational issues and perceptions of reasons that adversely affected the board’s ability to increase student achievement. The implications of these findings for school board members and superintendents are also discussed.

A Framework For Digital Wisdom In Higher Education, Michael Paulus

SPU Works

Institutions of higher education have a crucial role and responsibility at this moment of technological change to form people who will flourish in our so-called digital age. The speed with which digital information and communication technologies have permeated our lives has left little time for critical reflection on how we may intentionally integrate them into our lives. Regardless of when we were born or the depth of our technological expertise, we are all of us digitally naïve. Individually and collectively, we are still learning how to use new and emerging digital technologies well and wisely. This essay presents a framework …