Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
- Discipline
- Publication Year
Articles 1 - 30 of 267
Full-Text Articles in Education
An Effective Small Group Reading Intervention Scope And Sequence For Students In Grades Three To Five, Caitlin Phan
An Effective Small Group Reading Intervention Scope And Sequence For Students In Grades Three To Five, Caitlin Phan
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
The guiding question of this project is: What is the most effective scope and sequence for a reading academic support curriculum designed for small groups of students in grades three to five? The purpose of the project is to address the critical need for a well-defined scope and sequence for reading academic support teachers. Research that influenced the written scope and sequence includes reading intervention history, elementary students, struggling readers, types of approaches to teaching reading, and three schools of thought regarding teaching reading (Fountas and Pinnell, Orton-Gillingham, and Science of Reading). Integrating this research, the scope and sequence project …
Teaching Strategies For Low Literacy Adult Learners, Kelly Rynda
Teaching Strategies For Low Literacy Adult Learners, Kelly Rynda
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Research has demonstrated that low-literacy adult learners have different needs than children or more proficient adult readers, but teaching strategies are not often aimed at these students. The professional development presentation developed for this project focuses on the characteristics of these learners, how low-literacy skills affect their lives, and which interventions educators can use in the classroom. Key interventions include Robinson’s suggestions around word recognition, Tighe and Binder’s recommendations about morphology and fluency, Mellard and Fall’s ideas around language comprehension, Park’s suggestions for critical literacy, and Rodrigo et al.’s recommendations around reading for pleasure. The project shares information about the …
English Language Arts Curricular Interventions And Achievement In Advanced First Grade Learners From Underserved Backgrounds, Nicole Mckenzie
English Language Arts Curricular Interventions And Achievement In Advanced First Grade Learners From Underserved Backgrounds, Nicole Mckenzie
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
This capstone curriculum project seeks to answer the question: How do English Language Arts (ELA), culturally responsive curricular resources impact academic achievement in our advanced first-grade learners from historically underserved populations? The connection between implementing an advanced English language arts (ELA) Jacob’s Ladder poetry unit utilizing the Integrated Curriculum Model (ICM) and learning outcomes of students from historically underserved backgrounds, including twice-exceptional (2e), and racially, culturally, linguistically, and economically diverse (RCLED) learners are measured through growth from the preassessment to summative assessment. High-rigor curricula, culturally responsive teaching methods that tap into neuroscience, and differentiated instruction with entry points for all …
A Need For Culturally Relevant Texts To Motivate K-2 Students In Reading, Thi Hoai Anh Nguyen
A Need For Culturally Relevant Texts To Motivate K-2 Students In Reading, Thi Hoai Anh Nguyen
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
The research question addressed in this capstone project was: How can K-2 teachers boost student motivation in reading through interactive read-alouds using culturally relevant texts? After delving into the research on reading motivation, Culturally Relevant Texts, creating a Culturally Relevant Text set, developing student identity, promoting students’ appreciation of cultural diversity, and Interactive Read Alouds, the author created a "We Are All Different and That’s Beautiful” Text Set Unit which promotes students’ appreciation of cultural diversity by incorporating culturally relevant texts and interactive read-alouds. The text set unit with eight chosen culturally relevant texts and matching interactive read-aloud lesson plans …
The Disappearing Of The Hmong Language, Choua Yang
The Disappearing Of The Hmong Language, Choua Yang
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Within my personal and professional experience, I have observed that the Hmong oral language has declined since the Hmong people arrived in the United States. Over the past 50 years in the United States, there have been growing concerns regarding the decline in usage of the Hmong language within Hmong children. In my personal experience, my children who are second generation Hmong, only the five older children are bilingual while my three younger children only speak English. As for my seven grandchildren, who are third generation Hmong, they only speak English. They do not understand nor speak the Hmong language. …
Elevating Student Voices Through Rigorous Academic Discussion: A Unit Of Study For The Middle School English Language Arts Classroom, Emily O’Brien
Elevating Student Voices Through Rigorous Academic Discussion: A Unit Of Study For The Middle School English Language Arts Classroom, Emily O’Brien
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Although speaking and listening skills are included in the Common Core State Standards, they are often underemphasized in English Language Arts (ELA) classrooms and across disciplines. Research shows the benefits of cooperative and discussion-based learning for students, yet students are often not provided with the instruction and practice necessary for success in these areas. Especially in middle school, students thrive when given opportunities to connect with others. This project, a unit of study designed for a middle school ELA classroom, was designed to provide students with the academic discussion tools necessary to deepen literacy skills. Written through a culturally responsive …
Informal Education Builds Deeper Knowledge And Connections With Elasmobranchs To Develop An Understanding For Environmental Conservation, Lacie Ownbey
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Zoos and aquariums provide essential tools and opportunities to help get school aged children out of the classroom for informal education and learning. Using facilities that offer programs where the focus is on both entertainment and education, learning can be maximized to obtain literacy of a subject. That level of understanding can be then used to promote conservation and pro-environmental thinking for animals that could most benefit from a more focused setting, such as a non-charismatic megafauna: elasmobranchs (sharks and rays). Using Backward Design, where the goals of the program were determined first, a two-day Shark Researcher Camp was created …
Key Components And Best Practices Of Early Decoding Instruction, Erika Fruetel
Key Components And Best Practices Of Early Decoding Instruction, Erika Fruetel
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
The question that guided the research and project development was: What are key components and best practices in early decoding instruction? Throughout recent history, students in the United States have been taught to read based on two main theories: one that approaches literacy learning as natural development that should be supported by surrounding the child with rich and engaging literature, and the other that focuses more intently on teaching the student the patterns of spelling in order to decode words. Although educators have debated which is the most effective approach for decades, research consistently points to the importance of instructing …
Incorporating Opportunities For Diverse Literature Into The Early Elementary Classroom, Mary Cline
Incorporating Opportunities For Diverse Literature Into The Early Elementary Classroom, Mary Cline
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
The research shows that student engagement is positively impacted by literature that contains mirrors to their own lives and experiences. This is a set of lessons that are created to be incorporated into the school’s literacy curriculum for 1st and 2nd grade. Through reading and discussing various books, these lessons strive to add places for multicultural students to see their lives mirrored back to them as well as to give all students a chance to see another way of life by looking through a window into someone else’s world. The lesson plans focus on creating space for students to engage …
Implementing Tpr And Tprs In The Adult Esl Classroom With Slife Learners: A Teacher’S Diary Study, Ann Gehrt
Implementing Tpr And Tprs In The Adult Esl Classroom With Slife Learners: A Teacher’S Diary Study, Ann Gehrt
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations
This study addresses the question: how can TPR and TPRS be used in the adult ESL classroom to teach vocabulary and reading skills? Adult ELLs with limited or interrupted formal education may struggle to learn English in traditional classrooms that rely on pre-existing literacy skills they have not yet developed, such as reading or taking notes. TPR (Total Physical Response) and TPRS (Teaching Proficiency through Reading and Storytelling) are methods of teaching language that may make use of body movements, gestures, role-play, drama and oral storytelling to make language understandable before connecting it to its written form. TPR has a …
Creating A Generation Of Critical Information Consumers: Critical Literacy Strategies In An Upper Elementary Classroom, Maiah Cameron
Creating A Generation Of Critical Information Consumers: Critical Literacy Strategies In An Upper Elementary Classroom, Maiah Cameron
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Due to technology and social media, students now have access to an overwhelming amount of information at the tip of their fingers. It can be difficult for both children and adults to filter through this information and decipher facts from opinions. Elementary teachers should be working to teach their students how to view all media — books, articles, videos, photos, podcasts etc. — through a critical lens. This capstone delves into the research question: How can critical literacy strategies be implemented in an upper elementary classroom to create a generation of more informed citizens? The final website helps to define …
Curriculum Design That Supports Multilingual Learners' Literacy Development: Pairing The Science Of Reading And Oral Language Development Utilizing Read-Alouds, Eleanor Christman
Curriculum Design That Supports Multilingual Learners' Literacy Development: Pairing The Science Of Reading And Oral Language Development Utilizing Read-Alouds, Eleanor Christman
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
The curriculum designed for this project focuses on combining the science of reading with oral language development through read-alouds, with a focus on understanding text structure. The purpose of this study is to determine best practices for teaching multilingual learners how to read and to give teachers concrete materials to use in the classroom. Research suggests that phonics-based instruction supports the reading development of multilingual learners more than whole language instruction. Researchers also recommend teachers focus on more than just decoding, especially for multilingual learners as it connects to comprehension. Additionally, research emphasizes the importance of developing oral language in …
Utilizing Classical Literature In Kindergarten Classrooms: A Tool For Developing Social Emotional Skills And Reading Comprehension, Madeline Steinhoff
Utilizing Classical Literature In Kindergarten Classrooms: A Tool For Developing Social Emotional Skills And Reading Comprehension, Madeline Steinhoff
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
This capstone project seeks to answer the question, How can educators use pedagogical storytelling with classical literature to address the social-emotional needs of their students while also increasing reading comprehension in early years? For the purposes of this research, classical literature is defined mainly as fables, folk stories and fairy tales. In answering my research question, I explore the research that underpins the history of pedagogical storytelling, classical literature, best practices in reading comprehension and academic language instruction, and the foundations of social emotional learning. This Capstone Project includes a two week, ten lesson literature unit that weaves together these …
How To Design And Implement A Maker Space In The K-3 Classroom, Elizabeth Nelson
How To Design And Implement A Maker Space In The K-3 Classroom, Elizabeth Nelson
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
A maker space is an area designated to be used by participants to make a product through a hands-on experience. While the term maker space is relatively new to education, ‘making’ is embedded into human history. The research on these spaces relies on the importance of the maker space for a student's social-emotional well-being. Creative hands-on work specifically for children from low-income backgrounds supports the student in their primary years. At the same time, there needs to be more evidence in the research that proves how effective these spaces are in supporting students' academics. The topics explored in the literature …
Increasing Engagement And Effectiveness Of Independent Reading In The Kindergarten Classroom, Sarah Swanson
Increasing Engagement And Effectiveness Of Independent Reading In The Kindergarten Classroom, Sarah Swanson
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations
The research question addressed in this study was: What are the most effective and engaging methods for independent reading in the kindergarten classroom? Additionally, this study addressed the subquestion of: What are the benefits and disadvantages of reading traditional books and books on a digital device for young readers? The literature topics that were researched and reviewed included history and current trends in independent reading, academic success, motivation and engagement, technology, and effective independent reading strategies. For this study, a mixed methods approach was used to collect both qualitative and quantitative data within the kindergarten classroom. At the beginning of …
Improving Early Literacy Outcomes Through Play, Kimberly Bice
Improving Early Literacy Outcomes Through Play, Kimberly Bice
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
The research question asked in this capstone project is: how might incorporating playful learning into a literacy framework help improve early literacy outcomes? There is a growing body of evidence that playful learning, a mix of free and guided play, has a slew of benefits to school-aged children including: physical, emotional, social, and cognitive. The foundational research for this project explores the intersections of educational neuroscience, Culturally Responsive Practices, and foundational literacy skills and practices. In particular the scholarship of Eric Jensen, Drs. Gloria Ladson-Billings, Zaretta Hammond, and Hollis Scarbourough were foundational in the conception and development of this project. …
Improving Science Literacy Using Photographic Documentation Of Laboratory Activities, Mary Radus
Improving Science Literacy Using Photographic Documentation Of Laboratory Activities, Mary Radus
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations
Digital photography is a valuable educational tool which has been shown to improve language acquisition and vocabulary usage. Photography can also be used to enhance hands-on laboratory activities in high school science classes. This study examined the impact of photographic documentation of lab activities on students’ literacy in science. In this convergent, mixed methods investigation, 9th grade biology students took photographs during a lab activity, which they used to create collaborative photo projects based on the activity. Changes in literacy were measured by assessing the students’ usage of scientific vocabulary terms before and after the photo project, and assessing the …
Supporting Social-Emotional Learning With Diversely Representative Children’S Literature: Toolbox Supplementary Read Aloud Lesson Plans, Taylor Rose
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Read aloud texts play an essential role in shaping social-emotional learning skills, implementing routines, and bolstering early literacy skills in the early elementary classroom. Yet, despite the increasing racial and cultural diversity of the United States student population, children’s literature often lacks meaningful, intersectional representations of diversity. This capstone project pairs diverse children’s literature with the Toolbox social-emotional learning curriculum to explore the question, How can early elementary students' social-emotional skills develop through the intentional reading and conversation about children's literature featuring characters, authors, and themes of diverse and intersectional identities? The research concludes that the representational children’s literature can …
Understanding Effective Literacy Instruction For Primary Grade Teachers, Erika Hotchkiss
Understanding Effective Literacy Instruction For Primary Grade Teachers, Erika Hotchkiss
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Research on the topic of literacy instruction, and the best practices for effective literacy instruction, has been around for decades, but not all educators are aware of this research. This capstone project was designed to provide support for educators as they strengthen their understanding of how skilled reading develops and the best instructional practices to use with beginning readers. As a part of this research, six self-paced professional development modules were designed to address the question: How can a deeper understanding of the science of reading support primary grade teachers to be more effective with literacy instruction for beginning readers? …
Teaching Trauma-Informed Pedagogy And Critical Literacy In A Middle School Language Arts Classroom, Katherine Chambers
Teaching Trauma-Informed Pedagogy And Critical Literacy In A Middle School Language Arts Classroom, Katherine Chambers
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Trauma is an innate human experience. People from every walk of life can experience trauma at any time, in a variety of ways. The awareness of trauma is seeping into the forefront of our society. In particular, education has seen trauma in varying ways. Many educators are tasked with navigating trauma’s tricky waters. This capstone explores the possibility of how trauma-informed pedagogy and critical literacy impact student engagement in a middle school language arts classroom? Much of the literature reviewed in this capstone examines trauma’s complexities, trauma’s manifestation in schools and suggests several strategies that can be implemented to impact …
Multisensory Literacy Instruction: Efficacy For Struggling Multilingual Learners, Stephanie Sowma
Multisensory Literacy Instruction: Efficacy For Struggling Multilingual Learners, Stephanie Sowma
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
By the year 2025, approximately 25% of U.S. public school students will be multilingual learners. However, many mainstream teachers have not received any development in supporting this particular group of students. This capstone explores best literacy practices for multilingual learners, multisensory learning, and teacher professional development to answer the focus question: how can multisensory instruction be utilized to add engagement and rigor in order to improve the literacy skills of multilingual learners between 5 - 8 years old who score between a 1.0 - 2.9 on the WIDA Access Assessment and are struggling with basic reading skills? Multisensory literacy instruction …
Implementing Authentic Literacy Centers In A Kindergarten Classroom, Isabella Haeger
Implementing Authentic Literacy Centers In A Kindergarten Classroom, Isabella Haeger
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Cultivating a literacy-rich and engaging classroom community from the beginning of the kindergarten year is an important step to provide students with a positive experience with learning. Authentic literacy centers are a way for primary learners to interact with targeted literacy skills in a meaningful way. Teachers can plan intentional reading, writing, word work, and listening skills that are differentiated and hands-on. This capstone evaluates the question: What are the most impactful ways to establish authentic and engaging literacy work stations for kindergarten students that promote voice and choice? The summarizing website showcases authentic literacy tasks for each center and …
English Learner Families, Rural County Public Libraries, And Rural Public Elementary Schools, Carmel Murphy
English Learner Families, Rural County Public Libraries, And Rural Public Elementary Schools, Carmel Murphy
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations
English Learner families in rural areas have unique experiences in accessing bilingual materials in home languages for literacy learning. This research focused on gathering the perceptions of parents of elementary school ELs regarding the barriers that impede collaboration between public elementary schools and county public libraries for improving the literacy of ELs in rural communities. This qualitative research followed a grounded theory process and community-based research from data collection via interviews with parents of ELs, rural public elementary school educators, and rural county public librarians. Seven participants from Central Minnesota included two bilingual parents of ELs, three educators, and two …
Joy In Choice: Cultivating A Choice-Centric Literacy Classroom In Upper Elementary, Alexandra Pickell
Joy In Choice: Cultivating A Choice-Centric Literacy Classroom In Upper Elementary, Alexandra Pickell
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
The research question addressed in this project is: How do teachers initiate and nurture joyful, personally meaningful opportunities for reading in the classroom? This project is an introductory website detailing how and why teachers can shift their reading block to make it a time in the day when students are making choices for themselves. In so doing, student motivation and joy for reading is at the forefront of the classroom (Gambrell, 2015). The intended audience is any upper elementary teacher looking to decenter the teacher’s voice during independent reading, but is of particular importance for teachers who already have an …
An Intervention To Support Comprehension During Independent Reading Time, Jacob Klis
An Intervention To Support Comprehension During Independent Reading Time, Jacob Klis
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
The question that guided this project was: How can using an intervention based on a comprehension strategy increase student reading interest? This question guided research on digital and print texts, student reading interest, and a brief history of balanced literacy. Many schools use a mix of digital and print resources and students need to be prepared to understand each. Using independent reading time at school has shown to give students greater success in literacy and other areas of school. It has shown that dedicated independent reading time is important at school. The goal of this project was to make independent …
The Science Of Reading For English Learners, Allison Hanson
The Science Of Reading For English Learners, Allison Hanson
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
In recent years, a movement of researchers, educators, and parents promoting the science of reading has been reigniting the so-called “reading wars.” This movement has pointed out the ways in which typical balanced literacy practices do not reflect research on how students learn to read, especially in the acquisition of word recognition skills. However, the current debate is sometimes ignoring the unique needs of a rapidly growing segment of the U.S. student population: English Learners (ELs) and other multilingual students. This capstone project addresses the question: How does the science of reading inform reading instruction for ELs within a balanced …
Studying The Self: Students Examining Culture And Identity For Improved Engagement And Achievement, Zara Pylvainen
Studying The Self: Students Examining Culture And Identity For Improved Engagement And Achievement, Zara Pylvainen
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Research has demonstrated that incorporating culturally relevant and culturally sustaining pedagogy (CSP) into teaching can lead to greater academic success. The curriculum designed for this project focuses on using concepts of identity and culture as topics of study in a seventh-grade English language arts (ELA) class with the aim of improving student engagement and academic achievement. CSP argues that young people are in a fluid process of developing their identities, and our pedagogy should foster that development. CSP also maintains that classrooms need to provide space for communities of color to maintain, nurture, and sustain cultural practices. This curriculum design …
Does Lexia Core 5 Support Accelerated Reading Growth In Third Grade Intervention Students During Independent Reading Time With Minimal Teacher Support?, Whitney Strand
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations
This capstone addresses the following research question: Does Lexia Core 5 Support Accelerated Reading Growth in Third Grade Intervention Students During Independent Reading Time With Minimal Teacher Support? The author first examines the previous research around Lexia Core 5 done by O'Callaghan et al. (2016) & Maracuso et al. (2019). This mixed methods study investigates how using Lexia Core 5 impacts participants’ overall reading growth via pre- and post- assessment data. It follows participants’ Lexia Core 5 usage over the course of 7 weeks tracking both the minutes spent and number of units completed. Data for this study also includes …
Using An Interactive Word Wall To Increase Spanish Language Acquisition For Urban Middle School Learners, Jordan Schuneman
Using An Interactive Word Wall To Increase Spanish Language Acquisition For Urban Middle School Learners, Jordan Schuneman
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
My primary research question for my capstone project is: What are the ways in which interaction, collaboration, and dialogue impact students’ Spanish language acquisition? More specifically, my research and project aim to answer: How can an interactive word wall affect Spanish language acquisition in an urban classroom? I have created an interactive word wall curriculum. This was specifically designed to fit my context as a middle school Spanish teacher, grades 6-8. However, this interactive word wall curriculum can be utilized effectively in any content area. Through considering culturally and linguistically responsive teaching (Hollie, 2018) as well as how to best …
Strengthening Early Literacy Skills Through Data-Driven Decision Making, Kaari Bly
Strengthening Early Literacy Skills Through Data-Driven Decision Making, Kaari Bly
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
As part of this research, nine professional development sessions and a data workbook were designed to address the research question: how can a school establish a sustainable system for making data-based decisions to strengthen the literacy skills of kindergarten and first-grade students necessary for further educational success? Data-driven decision-making is an essential component of an MTSS framework and is based on the steps of a problem-solving model. Key tenets of a data-driven school include strong leadership, a comprehensive assessment system, easy access to data, time and resources to examine data, and clear connections between data and potential interventions. Often schools …