Elementary Education and Teaching Commons^™

Cognitively Guided Instruction In Elementary Mathematics: Understanding Factors That Influence Classroom Implementation, Teresa A. Conowal

Doctor of Education in Teacher Leadership Dissertations

This study focused on the teaching technique known as cognitively guided instruction (CGI), through which teachers explore the individual learning styles of their students and use the information they gather to teach more complex concepts more effectively. The focus of this study was on 10 elementary mathematics teachers, with the goal of gaining a deeper understanding of the reasons they are making limited use of CGI techniques in their classrooms. The study used interviews and classroom observations of the 10 participants to identify the factors influencing their willingness or reluctance to apply CGI techniques to their instructional practices. The study …

Entornos Estratégicos Formando Hoy Las Grandes Mentes De Mañana, Maria Sol Volman Sol Volman

ICOT 18 - International Conference on Thinking - Cultivating Mindsets for Global Citizens

Los espacios que nos rodean influyen en nuestro ánimo, en nuestras decisiones, comportamientos y valores.
Si, además, esos espacios del entorno son espacios educativos, en una edad tan temprana como la primera infancia, con su plasticidad neuronal, estos entornos deben estar cuidadosa y estratégicamente planificados por el docente para formar en ellos el espíritu de aprender.
El entorno es el espacio de trabajo significativo, sustentado por las fuerzas culturales en las que se basa esta investigación. Las 8 fuerzas culturales le dan forma a la cultura, y son las fuerzas que se ponen en movimiento para crear esta Cultura de …

Learning To Think...Thinking To Learn, James C. Dean Mr., Julie Pfeiffer, Nancy Famulari, Julia Connett, Briana Kaparis

ICOT 18 - International Conference on Thinking - Cultivating Mindsets for Global Citizens

How do you create a systemic school culture of THINKING? In this interactive presentation learn how 3 Miami-Dade schools are using a set of consistent visual tools to teach critical, creative THINKING and communication to all learners. This session will capitalize on connecting the visuals to the latest brain research and its implications on the developmental needs of PreK-Adult learners. Examples of practice will be highlighted by these schools.

Montessori Family Education, Katharina Vidojevic

Masters of Arts in Education Action Research Papers

Montessori family education is a stepping stone in forming a bridge between school and home. This action research is focused on increasing familial attendance in Montessori education classes. Using quantitative and qualitative research methods are important tools in discovering the needs of the school community. Attendance, Likert scales and feedback questionnaires were useful tools in reaching out to the familial community. Implementing the changes based on the research results showed a drastic increase in attendance. With families leading busy lives, the school meeting them half way showed positive quantitative and qualitative results. This study had a maximum of 28 families …

Academic And Social Effects Of Waldorf Education On Elementary School Students, Christian Zepeda

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

As society becomes more critical of public education, alternative education systems are becoming more popular. The Waldorf education system, based on the philosophy of Rudolf Steiner, has increased in popularity and commonality each decade. Currently, 23 Waldorf institutions exist in California. With this increase in popularity, it is important to analyze and examine the effectiveness of this education philosophy. An examination of Waldorf education, through research and interviews of Waldorf teachers and administration, will provide parents and teachers with an understanding of its strengths and weaknesses. Ultimately, Waldorf education provides a positive environment for students, yielding positive effects but this …

Stem Storytelling: Using Picture Books To Integrate Mathematics - "Dare To Tinker", Lindsey Herlehy, Karen Togliatti

Publications & Research

This series of activities invites students to engage in a design challenge that elicits mathematical and scientific thinking. In the first activity, the picture book The Most Magnificent Thing by Ashley Spires will be used as a catalyst to discuss the engineering design process as experienced by the protagonist, a little girl. Suggested questioning techniques and inferential reasoning strategies will focus on the trials and tribulations, frustrations, and successes achieved by the little girl. Additionally, discussion prompts are included to provide students an opportunity to reflect on the little girl as a mathematician and scientist as she takes action and …

Dorothy Moser Medlin Papers - Accession 1049, Dorothy Moser Medlin

Manuscript Collection

(The Dorothy Moser Medlin Papers are currently in processing.)

This collection contains most of the records of Dorothy Medlin’s work and correspondence and also includes reference materials, notes, microfilm, photographic negatives related both to her professional and personal life. Additions include a FLES Handbook, co-authored by Dorothy Medlin and a decorative mirror belonging to Dorothy Medlin.

Major series in this collection include: some original 18th century writings and ephemera and primary source material of André Morellet, extensive collection of secondary material on André Morellet's writings and translations, Winthrop related files, literary manuscripts and notes by Dorothy Medlin (1966-2011), copies …

Improving Reading Through Fine Motor Skill Development In First Grade, Tyler West-Higgins

Dissertations, Masters Theses, Capstones, and Culminating Projects

Children who struggle with learning to read in first grade, fall behind, and have difficulty catching up with their peers. Research has shown students who struggle to read in first grade, also struggle to read in later years. The purpose of this study was to determine if an intervention to enhance fine motor skills to a select group of students in one class room increased their reading abilities. This was a mixed methods research study which assessed the quantitative data from the running record assessments, and the qualitative data taken by teacher-aide during assessment process post fine motor intervention. This …

Re-Reading, Re-Writing, And Re-Imagining Texts: Critical Literacy In A Kindergarten Classroom, Meredith Labadie

Dissertations

This qualitative action research study focuses on the integration of critical literacy practices in a kindergarten classroom. Critical literacy recognizes that no texts are neutral, and that authors position their readers in particular ways. Thus critical literacy practices are those concerned with positioning readers to inquire into issues of language and power, and to disrupt, critique, and challenge texts. In this study, critical literacy was brought to life through a curriculum of rereading and revisiting texts over time. The study took place in the researcher’s kindergarten classroom, and follows students’ discussion, written responses, and dramatizations around texts read aloud in …

Wrong Place, Right Time, Rachel Mazor

Occasional Paper Series

Mazor recounts working in the three distinctly different environments during her first year of teaching: sixth-grade math, pre-school social studies, and first-grade reading. Each of these experiences taught her specific skills that she later applied to assignments; additionally, each experience helped her develop her own style as a teacher.

Perceptions In A Changing World: Teachers' Attitudes Toward The Implementation Of Educational Innovations, Joy Jones

Doctor of Education in Teacher Leadership Dissertations

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study is to examine teachers’ attitudes toward the implementation of educational innovations - with an explicit focus on social and emotional learning (SEL) and new teacher mentor (NTM) programs. Because teachers are primarily responsible for absorbing new information and implementing educational programs directly to students, their attitudes may influence how the program is perceived, the program’s delivery, and may also impact the program’s outcomes. Support for novice teachers is often regarded as necessary and warranted in many schools, and researchers unfailingly reveal findings that demonstrate the effectiveness of SEL; specifically in traditional school settings (Slaten, …

A Qualitative Case Study Of Teachers’ Perceptions And Practices In Social Justice Education And The Perceived Implications For K‒2nd Grade Children, Tina M. Lageson

CUP Ed.D. Dissertations

This qualitative case study explored the perceptions and practices of three teachers who teach social justice concepts in kindergarten and 2nd-grade classrooms in an urban school district in the Northwest region of the United States. The research sought to answer the following central questions: (a) What do teachers perceive about how instruction on social justice concepts impact early grade learners in classroom settings? (b) What do teachers perceive about how this instruction influences learner perceptions regarding their role in society? Through a three-phase data collection approach that included teacher and parent interviews, teacher observations with observation debrief, and student artifact …

Stem Storytelling: Using Picture Books To Integrate Mathematics - "Who Lives Here?", Lindsey Herlehy, Karen Togliatti

Publications & Research

This series of activities invites students to explore animals and their habitats, classify “animal” figures by habitat, sort, represent, and analyze data. In the first activity, the picture book Listen to Our World by Bill Martin, Jr. and Michael Sampson will be used to discuss eleven different animals and their habitats. Questioning strategies will focus on student comprehension and inferential reasoning skills related to why each animal lives in a particular type of habitat. This book is utilized at all grade levels to introduce the subsequent activity.

The grade-level activities that follow integrate students’ knowledge of animals and their habitats …

Literacy Tutoring Strategies Of America Reads University-Level Tutors, Mauricio Cadavid

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore, study, outline and describe tutoring strategies applied by American Reads (AR) tutors and non-America Reads (nAR) tutors helping young tutees develop early literacy skills. There is limited research on the implementation of effective tutoring strategies during one-on-one tutoring with elementary school children in terms of early literacy development. Most of the literature is split between peer tutoring and program tutoring. This lack of research presents a particular challenge when it comes to identifying an effective tutor and effective tutoring methodologies. Using a qualitative approach, this study utilizes survey data, session recordings, and …

Creating A Multiracial Lesson Plan, Clayton Davis

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

The purpose of this project is to teach students about multiracial identity issues. Multiracial populations in the U.S. continue to grow and it’s important for educators to address the needs of these students. A 5-E multiracial literature lesson plan was created for second grade that incorporates KWL and Text-to-World teaching strategies. A second grade class were read two children’s picture books, each featuring a biracial protagonist, and were asked to discuss and evaluate the content and commonalities of these stories. Students recorded what they learned in this lesson in their KWL’s. The results reveal that some students understood the problems …

Using Differentiated Instructional Strategies To Improve Early Elementary Comprehension Skills, Deborah S. Cirincione

Theses and Dissertations

This applied dissertation was designed to provide information to educators about teaching strategies used in the classroom. The researcher opened up a survey to Early Elementary Reading teachers so
they can provide their input in an anonymous manner so as to get as much information as possible so others can find this narrative, qualitative research useful in their careers. The writer researched scholarly and peer-reviewed journals, as well as, commonly used resources such as government websites to acquire and report recent practices of early elementary reading strategies used in classrooms. The study was of qualitative nature, and the survey was …

Music And Words: Connecting The Love Of Music With Language, Eileen P. Kennedy, Raymond Torres- Santos

Publications and Research

Children from different cultures have a natural affinity for rhymes, rhythm and music. Imagine if students were able, from the beginning of their education and experiences with academic writing and literacy, to access their unconscious and original selves from which to create their writing. The study of music can help to access this aware, inventive side that can enhance anyone’s writing. As an early childhood writing teacher and a composition teacher, we draw on our experiences with young children with words and music. We examine the relationship between music and words in an effort to bring the primitive drive of …

A Study Of Home Emergent Literacy Experiences Of Young Latino English Learners, Guy Trainin, Stephanie Wessels, J. Ron Nelson, Patricia Vadasy

Department of Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education: Faculty Publications

This empirical study explored the home environment literacy practices of young Latino English learners and their families. The participants were 217 incoming Kindergarten Latino EL students and parents. The data collection included a completed HLEQ by the parents. In addition, children were administered the PPVT, the pre- LAS, the PALS-K screening, the Woodcock Reading Mastery assessment, and the Wide Range Achievement test. All of the literacy assessments given to the children provided the researchers with comprehensive look at their literacy knowledge base. The results of this study indicate that there were two significant paths for students’ achievement: availability of books …

Integrating Reading Into Mathematics Instruction, Meredith Eby

Honors College Theses

Reading is not often thought of as a topic that affects mathematics, but it is a reality for low-level reader students. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore how teachers describe the relationship between mathematics and literacy skills, and to explore specific methods mathematics teachers used to accommodate low-level readers in their mathematics instruction. Participants were six teachers from a rural elementary school. Data was collected through recorded interviews and supplemental email questions that were coded. The data gathered showed that teachers use literacy in mathematics classrooms through word problems and mathematics stories. The most common accommodation was …

Parent Preferred Teacher Qualities: The Call For Highly Qualified Teachers, Taylor M. Roberson

Honors College Theses

This study sought to answer the question, “What teacher characteristics do parents value most?” as an initial response to the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001.The purpose of this study was to determine what teacher characteristics parents perceive as making teachers highly qualified to be used to improve parent-teacher relations and teacher effectiveness. To answer this question, a survey was used to collect data from the parents of K-5 students. 176 surveys were returned out of the 800 administered and were used to help the researcher conclude that there is not a teacher characteristic that stands alone to make …

Use Of The Pyramid Model For Supporting Preschool Refugees, Jennifer J. Hurley, Saveta Saini, Rachel A. Warren, Alissa J. Carberry

College of Education and Social Services Faculty Publications

Response to Intervention (RtI) is being applied to early childhood settings for the support of positive behavior and social development through the Pyramid Model (Fox, Carta, Strain, Dunlap & Hemmeter, 2010). This qualitative study assessed the use of the Pyramid Model for preschool aged refugee children living in a refugee resettlement community. Many young refugee children have experienced trauma (George, 2010) and some experience behavior and social challenges (Almqvist & Brandell-Forsberg, 1997). Twenty-five preschool service providers were interviewed about their use of the Pyramid Model for the support of preschool refugee students. Themes to be shared include how ECEs are …

12 Museum Theorists At Play, Marian Howard, Lauren Appel, Nicole Ferrin, David Vining, Katherine Hillman, Marissa Corwin, Berry Stein, Nicole Keller, William Elliston, David Bowles, Tiffany Reedy, Kathryn Eliza Harris, Liat Olenick

All Faculty and Staff Papers and Presentations

Introduction by Lauren Appel
1. Learning by Do-weyan, by Marian Howard, with Nicole Ferrin
2: Dewey Defines Himself and Education, by David Vining
3. Benjamin Ives Gilman: Arts in People’s Lives, by Katherine Hillman
4. John Cotton Dana: The Social Construction of Museums, by Marissa Corwin
5. Piaget in the Art Museum: Constructing Knowledge Through Active Engagement, by Berry Stein
6. Lev Vygotsky: The Social Aspects of Learning, by Nicole Keller
7. Paulo Freire: Literacy, Democracy, and Context, by Nicole Keller
8. Maxine Greene: Aesthetic Education, by Lauren Appel
9. Howard Gardner and Multiple Intelligence Theory: A Practical Application of …

Initial Teacher Licensure Programs At Minnesota State Univeristy, Mankato, Elizabeth J. Sandell

Elementary and Literacy Education Department Publications

Teacher preparation is a strong tradition of Minnesota State University, Mankato (MSU, Mankato), located approximately 85 miles southwest of Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota. The institution of higher education has been preparing teachers since 1868. Currently, initial teacher licensure programs in Elementary and Early Childhood (EEC) prepare graduates to be licensed as early childhood teachers, as elementary school teachers, and/or as middle school teachers. This article describes MSU, Mankato's programs in terms of its students, faculty members, academic programs, unique opportunities for students, and emphasis on preparing professionals to be leaders in education.

A Study Of The Impact Of The New Jersey Core Curriculum Content Standards On The Instructional Practices Of Teachers In Grades 1-4, David H. Dilks

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

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A Study Of The Impact Of The New Jersey Core Curriculum Content Standards On The Instructional Practices Of Teachers In Grades 1-4, David H. Dilks

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

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