Education Commons^™

Teachers' Conceptions And Enactment Of Disciplinary Literacy In Elementary Science Instruction: A Comparative Case Study, Melissa P. Mendenhall

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This case study explores elementary teachers’ conceptions and enactment of disciplinary literacy in elementary science instruction and the interaction between the two. Specifically, the purpose of this research was to describe how four fifth-grade teachers view literacy appropriate to science. Participants for this research were invited to participate by responding to an online survey and were selected based on criteria. Data sources include interviews, teacher artifacts, and observation. Qualitative data were coded, the codes compared to ideas in the field (overall themes), and global themes were generated as sense making tools to describe trends found in each case, case comparisons, …

Investigating Recommended Language Instruction Of Complex Literary Texts: A Content Analysis Of Close Reading Lesson Plans For Elementary Grades, Michelle Flory

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Expectations have been placed upon elementary teachers from the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts to guide students through close readings of informational and literary texts. This content analysis examined online close reading lesson plans to determine common objectives in elementary close reading lessons using literary text and to delineate which aspects of language are recommended for close reading instruction. Lessons for primary and intermediate grade levels were stratified and highlighted which instructional moves and student tasks are recommended for making complex language in texts more comprehensible. Key findings indicate a lack of alignment in lesson planning between …

A Multilevel Meta-Analysis Of Paired Oral Reading Methods In Elementary Classrooms, Jacob D. Downs

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

For decades, researchers and practitioners have supported developing readers via synchronous oral reader with a stronger peer or adult tutor. These methods–collectively known as Paired Oral Reading—are purported to promote reading achievement for tutee readers. However, despite nearly 60 years of investigation, no known research has adequately reviewed and synthesized the effects of similar practices commonly known as Paired Oral Reading. This dissertation systematically reviewed the published literature on the various methods of Paired Oral Reading with elementary-age students then meta-analyzed the quantitative studies that met pre-established inclusion criteria. The meta-analysis calculated the effect of Paired Oral Reading outcomes on …

The Relationship Between Small-Group Discourse And Student-Enacted Levels Of Cognitive Demand When Engaging With Mathematics Tasks At Different Depth Of Knowledge Levels, Kristy Litster

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

High cognitive demand (HCD) tasks can help students develop a deeper understanding of mathematics. Teachers need interventions that encourage students to engage in HCD activities. Small-group discourse provides HCD opportunities for students while solving mathematics problems. Discourse can take place after students solve problems individually (reflective) or in groups as students solve problems (exploratory). This study looks at the relationship between these two types of small-group discourse and student-enacted cognitive demand.

This study looks at how students engage with tasks that were designed at four different cognitive demand levels using Webb’s depth of knowledge (DOK) framework. Ninety-seven grade 5 students …

Building Community Using Experiential Education With Elementary Preservice Teachers In A Social Studies Methodology Course, Stephanie L. Speicher

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

There is urgency for teacher educators to instruct preservice teachers in the core tenants of social justice education. This urgency is based upon the ever-growing shift in the American demographic landscape and the responsibility of educators to teach for equity, justice, identity and community within classrooms across the U.S. Preservice teachers report feeling inadequately prepared to educate for social justice when entering the formal classroom setting. Feelings of incompetence in social justice teaching pedagogy expressed among preservice teachers coupled with minimal examination in the literature of the effects of teacher education practices that aid in the readiness to teach for …

Identifying Factors Common Among Students Who Do Not Fit The Typical Mathematics Self-Efficacy And Achievement Correlation, Jodi H. Mantilla

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

A student’s self-efficacy, or their belief in their ability to perform a specific behavior, has been shown to have a positive correlation with their academic achievement. In other words, if their self-efficacy is high, their academic achievement is high. If self-efficacy is low, likewise their achievement is low. Research has shown that this correlation is especially true when looking at the self-efficacy and academic achievement in a specific subject, such as mathematics. However, in a typical classroom, teachers experience students who have very high self-efficacy in their mathematics abilities yet perform mathematics tasks at a low level. They may also …

Examining Relationships Among Student Interim Proficiency, School Environment, And Student End-Of-Year Proficiency, Kathy Janzen

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Research on variables that are related to student academic proficiency has intensified due to the increased emphasis on high achievement for all students. The purpose of this correlational study was to explore the relative strength of the relationship between the school's learning environment and student achievement, and a literacy benchmark assessment and student achievement. Schools in the state of Utah that administered the Indicators of School Quality (ISQ) survey during the 2010-2011 school year and the Dynamic Indicators of Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS) assessments during the same school year were included in the study.

The study examined a combination of …

Validation Of The Use Of The Rapid Speech Transmission Index (Rasti) In Elementary School Classrooms, Aparna Rao

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The aim of this study was to assess the validity of an objective method of speech intelligibility, the Rapid Speech Transmission Index (RASTI), in elementary school classrooms, The RASTI can be obtained more quickly than subjective measures of speech intelligibility and has been shown to be highly valid with adult listeners in auditoriums. In this study RASTI values were correlated with scores on a subjective test of speech intelligibility, the word intelligibility by Picture Identification (WIPI) test, for 45 students in two elementary classrooms (grades 1 through 3 and grade5). Results indicated that the RASTI value is a poor predictor …

The Development And Validation Of An Assessment Instrument To Measure Environmental Education Competencies For Level Iii Of The Elementary Teacher Training Program At Utah State University, Francine Fukui

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of this study was to construct and validate an assessment instrument which could effectively measure the impact of implementing an environmental education component to the Level III program of the elementary teacher training program at Utah State University. It was the hope of this researcher that the test would also be administered to Level III students upon completion in subsequent quarters to indicate individual competence in environmental education.

Care was taken in the construction of the instrument to assure content validity of concepts considered important by local, university, and state environmental education reviewers. A preliminary form of the …

A Study Of The New Sodia Program In Elementary Teacher Education At Utah State University, Larry D. Klein

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This study was designed to compare elementary teacher preparation programs at Utah State University as a basis for evaluation of the SODIA program. SODIA is the acronym for a new elementary teacher preparation program initiated in the Fall of 1972 which was designed to be field centered and competency based.

The population of the study consisted of 104 elementary student teachers enrolled in student teaching during Fall and Winter Quarters of the 1973-74 academic year. There were four groups identified by the type of preparation program they had experienced. The groups were SODIA (the new program for preparing elementary teachers), …

A Comparison Of Methods Used To Predict Success In Ninth Grade Elementary Algebra, Sherry Slade

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

A study was conducted at North Cache Junior High School in Richmond, Utah, during the 1967-68 school year to determine an effective method of predicting which students would be able to succeed in algebra in the ninth grade. Eighth grade marks in mathematics, two algebra aptitude test scores, and student self-success ratings were compared with the final algebra grades to determine the best single predictor of success in algebra and to determine the best combined predictors of success.

The best single predictor of success in algebra was the student's final mark in eighth grade mathematics. The best combined predictors of …

A Survey Of The Utah Public School Superintendent's Methods For Selecting Elementary And Secondary School Principals, Keith D. Hansen

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This thesis is part of a series of coordinated research projects undertaken by the College of Education at the Utah State University. The series was under the general direction of Dr. Walter R. Borg working cooperatively with the State Department of Public Instruction and the superintendents of Utah's forty school districts. The superintendents of the state of Utah in recognizing the importance of improved selection systems tor administrators and upon noting the lack of any standard procedure tor selection, asked the Utah State University to accept the problem tor further research. The initial evaluation of the entire problem resulted in …

A Study Of Elementary Physical Education At The Whittier School, Logan, Utah, Phyllis C. Jacobson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Since the First World War, there has been an increased recognition for the need of physical education in the elementary school. Although educators recognize and agree on the need, they are not in agreement as to how to best achieve this need. Some educators believe that physical education should be taught as a specialized subject. Through this means, instruction is provided by a specialist who is trained in physical education. Some educators believe that physical education should be integrated with every other phase of the school program and taught by the classroom teacher. There are other educators who believe that …

A Study To Determine The Content Of An Industrial Arts Program In The Elementary Schools Of Box Elder County, Charles M. Hawkes

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The child is the reason for the school. He is the one for whom learning experiences are provided. Our understanding of the child as a growing individual and as a learner, his personality and his purposes and interests, supply the foundation for developing an effective educational program.

No longer do we look at the education program as a sole preparation for some future life. Instead it has now become more a process whereby we make the most of present living in order that we might live a more full and rich life each day. Education is something that goes on …