Curriculum and Instruction Commons^™

Influence Of Different Teaching Strategies On Physical Activity Levels In A Collegiate Swim Class, Derrick Bass, Ellen Martin

Perspectives In Learning

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of the number of teaching strategies used during instruction on the physical activity levels of students. Observations were conducted during a collegiate intermediate swimming class taught by an assistant professor at a university in the southeast United States. The class consisted of 16 undergraduate students from varying backgrounds and major fields of study. The professor was observed for the use of Graham’s (2001) 16 teaching strategies. Teaching behaviors were observed using a simple event recording sheet to allow for the occurrence or lack of occurrence of certain teaching strategies to …

Book Reviews

Perspectives In Learning

Book Reviews

Facebook As A Learning Tool, Rebecca Toland

Perspectives In Learning

Facebook is a social network that has been used by hundreds of people around the world. The network started as a technologically infused meeting place for college students to communicate socially. Since the inception, the network has blossomed into a global sensation. Such growth has spurred many uses for the site including the opportunity to add to the learning experiences for college students. Facebook is a tool in a learning revolution that incorporates the ease of technology and communication efforts between students and between teachers and students. This essay focuses on how Facebook can be used as a learning tool …

Reviewers For Volume 14

Perspectives In Learning

Reviewers for Volume 14

The Effect Of Peer Leader Instruction On Introductory University Science And Mathematics Course Performance: Preliminary Results, Kimberly Shaw, Cindy Ticknor, Timothy Howard

Perspectives In Learning

The Peer Instruction Leader (PIL) program at Columbus State University pairs courses having historically low success rates with dedicated peer helpers in an attempt to boost student learning and success. PILs are selected from undergraduate students who have demonstrated success in the targeted subject. They attend classes, meet with the assigned instructor periodically, participate in PIL training, and manage course focused discussion groups. The authors analyze data collected in the early stages of the program, which shows that students who attended the discussion groups fared better than those who did not.

Welcome To Volume 14

Perspectives In Learning

Welcome to Volume 14 of Perspectives in Learning

Introducing Computer Science In An Integrated Science Course, Barry Lawson, Doug Szajda, Lewis Barnett Iii

Department of Math & Statistics Faculty Publications

This paper describes our implementation and experience of incorporating computer science concepts into a team-taught, first-year interdisciplinary course for prospective science majors at the University of Richmond. The course integrates essential concepts from each of five STEM disciplines: biology, chemistry, computer science, mathematics, and physics. Including computer science in this course faces three primary challenges: few of the students have any CS background; the time devoted to CS instruction is reduced compared to a traditional introductory CS course; and the spirit of the course requires the CS material to be highly integrated with the other disciplines. Here we discuss our …

Structuring A Teacher Education Program For Faculty Collaboration And Second-Order Change, Tammy V. Abernathy, Shanon S. Taylor

Journal of Educational Leadership in Action

The purpose of this paper is to describe the structure and functions of an integrated elementary special education undergraduate teacher program (Integrated Elementary/Special Education Teacher Education Program, ITEP). By abandoning our old “enhancement model” of teacher education, we redesigned our program into a “merged model.” We examine this restructuring from the perspective of first- and second- order change, and we discuss the obstacles we found that prohibit meaningful second-order change. Finally, we briefly discuss how our experiences in designing ITEP and our state’s devastating fiscal crisis have affected our teacher-education programs and nudged us into more authentic second-order changes.

Plcs: Student Outcomes Evaluation In A Midwest High School, Kelly E. Dickinson

Journal of Educational Leadership in Action

This study was an evaluation of student outcomes following a five-year implementation of PLCs at Midwest High School in the U.S. Three research questions were addressed: (1) Has student achievement increased during the course of implementing PLCs? If so, is there evidence that this is a result of a contribution from PLC implementation from 2006-2011? (2) Have teacher attitudes toward curriculum rigor, public image, quality of education, and post-high school preparedness changed during the implementation of PLCs from 2006-2011? (3) Is the staff, in April 2011, a mature PLC? For research question one, eight hypotheses resulted in the evaluation of …

University Presidents' Perspectives Of The Knowledge And Competencies Needed In 21st Century Higher Education Leadership, Sydney Freeman Jr., Frances K. Kochan

Journal of Educational Leadership in Action

The purpose of this study was to identify the core knowledge and competencies needed for executive leadership in higher education administration as perceived by university presidents. Thirteen presidents shared the knowledge and competencies they perceived as being essential for an effective presidency. The respondents identified the important knowledge areas as: foundational; acquisition of cultural knowledge; and complex cognitive. They viewed personal attributes, management, and communications as the essential competency areas. The study found that presidents viewed themselves both as leaders and as managers.

Results of this study should be helpful to organizations seeking to develop and/or implement degree programs to …

Principals' Emotional Intelligence And Its Impact On Adequate Yearly Progress, Evelyn Henry, Warren Hope

Journal of Educational Leadership in Action

Colleges and universities prepare candidates with theory and leadership scenarios, enabling them to become leaders of successful schools. However, some principals do not lead their schools to success. Cognizant of this reality, it would be beneficial to know why principals with equivalent leadership training often experience different outcomes of school success based upon student academic achievement. The literature claims that emotional intelligence influences leadership in an organization. Indeed, some scholars assert that leaders who possess high levels of emotional intelligence have a greater effect on their organizations than their counterparts who have lower levels of emotional intelligence.

This research sought …

Teacher Internship Report - Carpinteria High School, Holly S. Smith

Agricultural Education: Graduate Internship Reports

This internship/project report includes validation documents required in meeting the quality criteria for secondary-level programs of instruction in agriculture. The documents are concurrently used for the Agriculture Incentive Grant review process at Carpinteria High School conducted by representatives of the California Department of Education. The internship included the development of a comprehensive program plan for Carpinteria High School. The plan includes information to receive state/local funding, outline the goals and objectives of the program, along with an overview of Carpinteria High School, the agriculture program and community.

Teachers’ Perceptions On The Changes In The Curriculum And Exit Examinations For Biology And Human Biology, Mirko Krüger, Mihye Won, David F. Treagust

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

In the age of educational accountability, national and state-wide measures are assumed to secure and improve the educational quality. However, educators often wonder how much a new accountability measure may improve the actual teaching and learning practices when the agents of change (teachers) are not active participants of such educational reform. Nevertheless, in Australia, the National Curriculum is rolling in for the first time for K-10 school education in 2012-13. In Western Australia, the new Western Australian Certificate of Education (WACE) system with new compulsory exit examination requirements has been implemented recently for Years 11-12. In this study, using the …

Examining The Relationship Between Information Obtained At Kindergarten Registration And Reading Comprehension Six Years Later, Paige Swartz

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this correlational study was to determine if variables known upon a group of students' enrollment in kindergarten had a significant relationship with their high-stakes reading assessment results obtained six years later, in the students' fifth grade year. Archival data was gathered from a rural northern Georgia school district. After a correlation matrix was constructed to examine the relationships among all variables of interest, bivariate linear regressions were used to determine whether the predictor variables explained any variance in the results of the fifth grade high-stakes reading assessment. Results indicated that one of the four predictor variables (vocabulary) …

Teacher Self-Efficacy: Common Core State Standards Within A 21st Century Skills Framework, John Wilborn

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this case study was to understand teachers' self-efficacy in instructing 21st century learning skills in a high school core curriculum. This study examined the impact of three highly qualified teachers' attitudes toward instructing the Common Core State Standards 4C's (critical thinking, collaboration, communication, creativity) within a 21st century skills framework. Four research questions guided this study. What attitudes do teachers exhibit regarding instruction of 21st century learning skills? To what extent do teachers seek to engage students in creativity and innovation? To what degree do teachers implement neomillennial learning styles? How will the participants measure their own …

A Case Study On The Impact Of The Read 180 Reading Intervention Program On Affective And Cognitive Reading Skills For At-Risk Secondary Level Students, Jeffrey Vogel

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this qualitative case study was to investigate the impact of the READ 180 reading intervention program upon the affective and cognitive reading skills of 21 struggling ninth grade at-risk students at a Title I high school in Southern California. There was minimal qualitative analysis of the READ 180 program at the secondary level and nominal research in general on affective learning regarding motivation to read for at-risk high school students. This study was designed to explore what changes, if any, may occur in the reading attitudes (affective skills) and comprehension levels (cognitive skills) of participants in the …

Self-Perceptions Of Gifted Achievers And Underachievers: A Phenomenological Study, Anne Behrend

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Although much research exists on the academic benefits of ability grouping for highly gifted students, and considerable numbers of studies are reported in the literature concerning the emotional and social adjustment of these talented students, there is a lack of information on the reasons for the distinct disparity in the levels of achievement attained by members of this group. This study investigated, from the perceptions of the students themselves, what school factors make the difference in their motivation to succeed. The researcher examined the academic and later careers of seven gifted young people, and interviewed three of their teachers as …

Pengembangan Komponen Pembelajaran Bahasa Arab Di Madrasah Aliyah, Moh. Khasairi

Bahasa dan Seni: Jurnal Bahasa, Sastra, Seni, dan Pengajarannya

This article discusses the development of learning components in the preparation of designing an Arabic language learning system in Madrasah Aliyah. Various development models can be utilized in designing learning systems, such as the Kemp Model, Banathy Model, PPSI Model, Dick and Carey Model, and the Almisri Model. The Almisri Model applies the following steps in designing Arabic language learning: needs analysis, formulation of needs and competencies, materials development, media and strategy development, and evaluation development. The development of an Arabic language learning system in Madrasah Aliyah must consider the characteristics of Arabic as a communication tool and its Islamic …

Environmental And Social Sustainability Impacts Of Teaching And Research: Some Ideas, Rowena H. Scott

eCULTURE

"One aim of Australia’s 2009 National Action Plan for Education for Sustainability is to equip all Australians with the awareness, knowledge, skills, values and motivation to live sustainably in order that future generations can meet their needs. Despite the efforts of ECU Green Office Program, their brief is not to address curriculum issues so consequently this paper aims to be a starting point for discussions that examine how we at Edith Cowan University teach and conduct research that considers their environmental, social, cultural and economic implications. This paper focuses on two main issues: how ECU units teach in environmentally sustainable …

Surviving And Sustaining Teaching Excellence: A Narrative Of ‘Entrapment’, Heather Sparrow

eCULTURE

"This paper discusses the key concepts of ‘surviving’ and ‘sustaining’ in the context of teaching excellence in contemporary universities, and reports the findings emerging from a work-in-progress study of Award Winning Teachers. It provides evidence that teachers recognized for their passion, commitment and expertise in teaching, work well beyond their paid hours to achieve excellence. Most become ‘entrapped’ in a culture of over-work that can have a negative impact on their lives and well-being. Factors that influence ‘teaching sustainability’ are presented, to support university teachers, administrators and managers in thinking about ways to improve the teaching and learning environment for …