Education Commons^™

Acer Research Conference Proceedings (2015), Acer

2009 - 2019 ACER Research Conferences

It is indeed timely that Research Conference 2015 addresses the theme Learning Assessments: Designing the future. It is six years since our Research Conference considered issues in assessment, and the landscape is being significantly transformed. Not only is Australia’s school curriculum changing, but related issues of teaching quality and assessment practice are hot topics here and in many other countries. This transforming landscape includes changes in thinking about the fundamental purposes of assessment; growing demands for the assessment of a broader range of student skills and capabilities; and new technologies that allow us to gather and visualise information about student …

Effective Conversations Around Tough Text Within Middle School Literature Circles, Gretchen Elizabeth Enselein

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

The research question addressed in this project was, how can I ensure that effective conversations around tough text are occurring within middle school literature circles? It explores the role of literature circles within middle school classrooms. The capstone outlines the scaffolding provided for student success. Defined is the term “tough text” and how text can successfully be implemented with the use of discussion to promote effective conversations. The author documents the related research to identify and define best practice strategies to implement and support existing curriculums in a middle school. Created to be implemented school-wide as a supplement to existing …

Using A Culturally Relevant Text Effectively To Support Diversity, Racial Equity, And School Community Building, Syra Yang

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

The research question addressed is, how can a culturally relevant text be used effectively to support diversity, racial equity, and school community building? This capstone shows how our school system is not constructed to support African American students’ learning as it does not acknowledge racial and cultural differences. The author was influenced by her own educational experiences and current racial equity journey. The author stresses how culturally relevant text and meaningful conversations or dialogue implemented into classrooms provides opportunities for everyone to learn from and acknowledge each other. In addition, she includes a curriculum design that is culturally responsive, focusing …

The Effectiveness Of Direct Instruction In Increasing English Reading Fluency For Arabic Speaking English Language Learner Students In Qatar: A Research Case Study, Jared Andrew Lorence

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

The research question addressed in this project was, what effect does Direct Instruction reading curriculum have on improving the reading fluency of Arabic speaking, English language middle school students? It documents one teacher’s experience and results using Direct Instruction reading curricula to improve reading fluency and comprehension of Qatari English Learner students. The author provides a literature review of Direct Instruction research and documents the results of his own efforts to increase the reading fluency of his students using Direct Instruction curricula and methods. He concludes that Direct Instruction was ineffective for his students, as it did not significantly improve …

Practitioner Inquiry: Teaching Literacy With English Language Learners, Rosemarie Brefeld

Dissertations

This qualitative research examines a practitioner inquiry group comprised of teachers of English Language Learners (ELLs) with the following research questions in mind: What happens when a group of ESL teachers collaborate in a dialogically inspired professional development context to learn about navigating discussion with complex texts and their ELL students? How does teacher learning evolve and address the complexities of the teacher/learner discourse under discussion in the professional development inquiry? What are the thematic and discursive contours of teaching and learning in this professional development context? In what ways will lesson development be relevant to the needs of those …

The Impact Of Sentence Frames On Readers Workshop Responses, Joseph Peter Reyes Jr

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

The research question addressed is, how does the implementation of sentence frames impact students written responses? The teacher noted how difficult it was at times to get ELs to engage in discussion and writing assignments related to topics being studied. The sentence frames were used as a starting point to elicit students written responses. Sentence frames were implemented during a middle school Readers Workshop class and during a collaborative project with the middle school social studies class. Insight is shared as to factors that may enhance the use of sentence frames as a scaffold such as, instructional planning, peer interactions, …

Encouraging Student-­Generated Critical Questions Through Literature Circles In A Tenth-­Grade Classroom, Damon Reuben Brook

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

This study explored how literature circles were used to encourage 32 tenth­grade students enrolled in an English 10 class to generate critical questions about memoirs. The literature review overviewed the philosophy of student­centered classrooms as well as the specific benefits of using literature circles and question­answer relationship (QAR) reading strategies. This study covered a four­week unit where teams of students were observed in interest­based literature circles. Students discussed the texts and recorded questions that they used for discussions. Other data included analysis of teacher­generated reflection journals. The results of the study revealed that the students overall responded positively to the …

Korean Migrant Youth Identity Work In The Transnational Social Field: A Link Between Identity, Transnationalism, And New Media Literacy, Sujin Kim

Dissertations

Informed by the new understandings of space, culture, and identity in the fast-changing world where communication technology connects and compresses multiple spaces, this qualitative study examines how Korean migrant youth understand, negotiate, and articulate their complex identities across and beyond various borders. The research questions were: (1) What are the contexts in which migrant youth negotiate their identities? (2) How do youth understand and negotiate their sense of belonging? (3) How do youth’s cultural and literacy practices, particularly in new media, inform and shape their identities? Using an ethnographic case study design, I collected data from 32 survey participants and …

Deficit Discourse, Literate Lives: Success Narratives Of Black Youth, Ann Marie Bennett

Doctoral Dissertations

The current dialogue surrounding Black youth portrays these youth as “thugs” who come from “broken” families and “apathetic” communities. Even some educational discourses portray Black youth as “at-risk” students who lack the resources necessary to achieve in school. These dialogues traffic in deficit language without paying attention to the successes found in the Black community. The purpose of this study was to utilize an anti-deficit perspective to capture the stories of how urban Black children in a mid-sized Southeastern city are achieving positive literacy and academic outcomes in the upper elementary and middle grades. I sought to understand how Black …

The Impact Of Creating Visual Arts On Reading Comprehension In Third Grade Students, Erica M. Mathieson

Masters of Arts in Education Action Research Papers

The intent of this action research study was to determine how integrating visual arts activities into reading lessons could impact students’ literacy skills. The study took place in a suburban elementary school and included both male and female students, aged eight to nine years old. The data was collected using comprehension tests, student/teacher reflections, and information gathered from the students’ artwork. Student literacy skills did show gains as a result of this intervention. The study also exhibited ways in which visual art teachers can be valuable participants in the push to integrate literature into other content areas. Creating visual artwork …

Assessing High School Science Students’ Abilities To Use Cross Cutting Literacy Skills And Scientific Argumentative Writing Skills In A Mid-Western School District, Ellen M. Karel

Masters Theses

This study sought to determine to what extent a centrally focused initiative concentrated on how to teach students to not just write, but how to think, read, and speak about real world problems in a persuasive manner based on multiple sets of data related to science concepts, increased scientific argumentative writing proficiencies among high school students. A secondary area this study attempted to explore was the correlation between the implemented processes in the initiative and high school students’ scientific argumentative writing proficiencies. The study was conducted in a mid-western high school, population 1,088, with a select group of students in …

Measuring The Adult Literacy Rate In English: The Case Of The Grand Rapids West Hope Zone, Lindsay M. Mcholme

Masters Theses

Research efforts in identifying adult literacy rates have for the most part focused on national and international contexts. Conversely, there has been little to no research conducted on neighborhood literacy rates in medium size cities. The purpose of this study was to identify the adult literacy rate in the West Hope Zone, a neighborhood in Grand Rapids Michigan. The major findings reveal that the English illiteracy rates are higher than the most recent estimations by the National Adult Literacy Survey. Adults who attended college, regardless of the language, had more literacy skills and knowledge than those who had a high …

Academic Language In Book Clubs, Tanya Marie Schuh-Modelli

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

Book clubs are increasingly used by teachers to help raise ELL literacy levels. Yet, there has been little research on whether this tool actually contributes to improved oral language proficiency. The research question is, after being taught the academic language needed to ask and answer higher order questions, how well are students able to ask and answer questions? This study examines to what extent students are able to engage in higher-order questioning after receiving direct instructional support through book clubs. The methods employ anecdotal notes, transcripts of student conversations, and student written work to assess how students can discuss text …

The Integration Of Social And Emotional Learning And Literacy, Sarah Marie Kennon Hippert

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

A curriculum development project exploring the integration of Social and Emotional Learning skills into the mini-lesson portion of Reader’s Workshop. Included is a definition of Social and Emotional Learning, an exploration of existing Social and Emotional curricula and state standards, a discussion of the effects of Social and Emotional Learning on both students and teachers, and an examination of impacts of Social and Emotional Learning on future success of students. The curriculum developed herein relies on picture books as a framework for enhancing both existing literacy and Social and Emotional curricula. It is organized around the five Social and Emotional …

Literacy And Social Skill Development: A Technology-Focused Curriculum Design, Karissa Sue Wentzel

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

The curriculum design created in this project was centered around the concept that the integration of technology into a 6th grade classroom can facilitate the advancement of both literacy and social skill development. It documents one teacher’s use of various technological applications and reading related activities to cultivate academic conversations and see growth amongst five pre-selected and targeted social skills. The author documents the details of the unit and provides researched literature to support the foundation for the curriculum design. The key influence for the study was the author’s personal experience at a one-to-one iPad school. The author concludes the …

Top Borrowed Library Books And Series, Jo Earp

Teacher infographics

Looking to freshen up your library for the new term? Here’s a list of the top borrowed library books and series, as discovered by a recent survey.

Pisa 2009 Plus Results : Performance Of 15-Year-Olds In Reading, Mathematics And Science For 10 Additional Participants, Maurice Walker

Maurice Walker

The OECD Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) is an international comparative survey of 15-year-olds’ knowledge and skills in reading, mathematical and scientific literacy. PISA seeks to measure how well young adults have acquired the knowledge and skills that are required to function as successful members of society. As part of the PISA 2009 survey, students completed an assessment on reading literacy, mathematical literacy and scientific literacy, as well as an extensive background questionnaire. School principals also completed a survey describing the context of education at their school, including the level of resources in the school and qualifications of staff. …

The Cure For Early Grades Assessment Difficulties? Take A Tablet, Maurice Walker

Maurice Walker

Maurice Walker reports on an innovative approach to assessment using tablets to monitor educational development in the early years of schooling.

Preparing For Storms Nonreader Facilitator's Guide, Hazel Spaulding Parker, Tara Lambeth, Pam Jenkins, Monica Farris, Jeff Rinehart

CHART Publications

The Preparing for Storms nonreader facilitator's guide includes lesson plans and flashcards that coincide with the Preparing for Storms nonreader manual.

Teacher Perceptions Of Factors Influencing Their Self-Efficacy With Using One-To-One Technology During Literacy Instruction, Michael Todd Methvin

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Teacher perceptions of factors that influence their own self-efficacy with using one-to-one technology during literacy instruction were examined through a multi-site, multi-subject case study. An initial survey was administered to determine the self-efficacy level of a group of participants from a school district that was implementing a one-to-one technology initiative. From this initial data set, four participants with varying levels of self-efficacy were invited to participate in the second, qualitative, phase of the data collection process to better understand factors they perceived to influence these levels. Results revealed that teachers perceived their self-efficacy of one-to-one technology use during literacy instruction …

Reported Literacy, Media Consumption And Social Media Use As Measures Of Relevance Of Spanish As A Heritage Language, Isabel Velázquez

Spanish Language and Literature

Aims and objectives: This paper explores one dimension of language maintenance among college-aged heritage speakers of Spanish (HSS) in three communities of the U.S. Midwest. The aim was to understand whether Spanish was relevant at a point in life in which they were developing their own networks away from their families. Research questions: Were reading and writing in Spanish relevant for the participants? Did they use Spanish when on social media? Did they text in Spanish? Was Spanish relevant for them when consuming content on electronic media?

Methodology: This analysis is part of a larger study on HSS in communities …

Sacred Spaces: A Narrative Analysis Of The Influences Of Language And Literacy Experiences On The Self-Hood And Identity Of High-Achieving African American Female College Freshmen, Michelle Flowers Taylor

LMU/LLS Theses and Dissertations

Late-adolescent African American students face unique difficulties on their journey to womanhood. As members of a double minority (i.e., African American and female) (Jean & Feagin, 1998), certain limiting stereotypes relevant to both race and gender pose challenges to these students. They must overcome these challenges in order to excel within the various and changing environments they move through on a daily basis (hooks, 1981, 1994). Within the context of social justice, this dissertation provides insight into the role that language and literacy practices play to help enable the positive and affirming development of self-hood of African American college freshmen. …

Economic Literacy: Measuring The Economic Human Capital Of Arkansas K-12 Teachers, June Marie Freund

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Economic literacy is recognized as a deficit quality in the United States, no more prevalent than during the last great recession. It is paramount the K-12 educational system lead the movement to educate the public on economic content and issues, as it is the one institution that has direct contact with all citizens. The question then must be asked, how economic literate are teachers entrusted with the responsibility of imparting economic knowledge to his/her K-12 grade level student. A sample of Arkansas teachers at each grade level K – 12 were tested using national normed economic literacy tests designed to …

The Integration Of Play Into The First-Grade Language Arts Curriculum For English Language Learners, Cheryl Jean Sanderson

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

The research question addressed in this project was, can the integration of play and games with rules into the first-grade Language Arts curriculum improve the oral speaking and reading skills for English language learners? To investigate the answer to that question, I studied how a child’s first language develops. For children who learn a second language, Krashen’s models were utilized in learning how a second language is acquired. Play and games with rules are defined. Looking primarily to Piaget and Vigotsky, I learned about the development of the child, play, games with rules and how a child learns through play. …

Effect Of Latinos In Action Peer Tutoring On Elementary Student Oral Reading Fluency Scores, Darren M. Hansen

Theses and Dissertations

The Latino population is the largest minority group in the United States, making up 16.3% of the total population. As the Latino population of the US grows, the Latino student population within schools across the nation is also growing, accounting for 10.5% of the student population. While the Latino student population continues to grow, there is evidence that this group is not achieving academically at the same rate as other groups. Latino statistics in Utah showed a similar situation within public schools. Fifty-one percent of Latino fourth graders were reading below the expected levels, compared to 22% for Caucasian students. …

English Learners' Participation In Mathematical Discourse, Lindsay Marie Merrill

Theses and Dissertations

Due to the increasing diversity of mathematics classrooms today, teachers need guidance on how to support English Learners (ELs) in mathematics classes in a way that situates language learning within mathematical activity. Unfortunately, neither mathematics education research nor EL education research is sure how to navigate the complexity of teaching ELs mathematics while supporting both their language development and their mathematical development through their participation in mathematical activity. This study examined ELs' participation in mathematical Discourse, investigating both the mathematical purposes ELs accomplished by using multiple symbol systems, and the way ELs used non-English language (NEL) symbol systems to support …

Meeting The Challenge Of Disciplinary Literacies, Marion Meiers

Marion Meiers

Language And Thought In Egypt's Schools Today: What Does Arabic Mean To Arabic Native Speakers? A Literature Review, Diego Dalle Carbonare

Capstone and Graduation Projects

Sociocultural education initiated by Leo Vygotsky strongly believes that language of instruction affects thinking. With regards to the present situation in Egypt, the present research explores the current literature on the value that Arabic has in the Arabic speaking world. Over against a wide-spread opinion that English should be used as the only medium of instruction in early years of literacy, literature shows that some forms of immersion have negative impact on the mastery of mother tongue, and on the very development of cognitive skills. The linguistic and educational scenario is further complicated by the fact that Arabic is a …

An Exploration Of How Using Best Practices Curriculum With Tutoring Affects Kindergarten Literacy: A Literature Review, Cay Collins

Symposium Of University Research and Creative Expression (SOURCE)

Early interventions are being used to improve reading skills in children. The purpose of this literature review is to examine the best practices used in kindergarten literacy. The review will look at some of the current tools used in schools that have produced positive results. It will also examine the Wildcat Buddies tutoring program at Central Washington University, which uses the Sound Partners curriculum. The review will focus on how using current programs with tutors may positively impact literacy outcomes for early learners.

How Is U.S. Adults’ Health Related To Literacy, Numeracy, Technological Problem-Solving Skills, And Adult Education? A Piaac Analysis, Esther Prins, Shannon Monnat, Carol Clymer, Blaire Willson Toso

Adult Education Research Conference

This paper uses U.S. data from the Program for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC) to analyze the relationship between self-reported health and (a) literacy, numeracy, and technological problem-solving skills, and (b) involvement in adult education, and to determine whether those relationships vary by race/ethnicity and educational attainment.