Curriculum and Instruction Commons^™

Mastery Motivational Climate: The Key To Vocational Students' Enjoyment Of Physical Activity, Laura C. Hohengasser

Master’s Theses and Projects

This study examined the effect of a mastery motivational climate on vocational students’ physical activity enjoyment levels. Participants were 84 ninth graders (boys=53 and girls=31) aged 14 to 16 years from eight different school districts, who attended a vocational-technical school in New England. Surveys were used pre- and post-mastery climate exposure to assess students’ prior physical education experiences, perceptions of motivational climates, and levels of physical activity enjoyment. Results indicated that the sample of vocational students perceived a higher level of mastery motivational climate at the New England vocational- technical school with a higher level of physical activity enjoyment than …

Intercultural Communication In Florida: The Immigrant Story - A Program For Adult Learners, Stephanie V. Wobensmith

Capstone Collection

Although participation in university study abroad programs has grown steadily within the United States in recent years, many students are still being left without access to the important intercultural learning that it allows. Adult learners, students over the age of 25 who often have family and work responsibilities outside of the academic setting, are frequently included in this underrepresented demographic. In order to create a more accessible program for these students, the Intercultural Communication in Florida: The Immigrant Story (ICC in Florida) program uses the same learning paradigm as short-term study abroad but combines it with lessons learned through newer …

Value And Effectiveness Of An Intervention Reading Course, Imari Rashad Hazelwood

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Students who graduate from high school and receive a diploma believe they are indeed ready for a college education. What most of these students are not aware of is that many students enter into higher education underprepared for the rigors of college level coursework. There are support programs such as tutoring and intervention reading courses that have been created to combat this problem and further prepare students to handle college level work, specifically reading. This study evaluated the effectiveness of an intervention reading course in terms of student success and growth. Students participated in a semester long course and were …

Best Practices And Assistive Technology Tools For Students With Learning Disabilities Used In The Business Education Classroom, Sadie L. Aronson

Curriculum and Instruction Undergraduate Honors Theses

This paper identifies the assistive technology tools for students with learning disabilities in the business education classroom and the best practices for teaching students with learning disabilities. The two research questions are: (1) What assistive technology tools for students with learning disabilities are utilized in the business education classroom? And (2) What are the best practices for teaching students with learning disabilities? The participants were business education teachers in the northwest Arkansas area who were mentor teachers for business education student teachers. The results indicated that adjusting time allowance and peer instruction/tutoring was the most common best practice and the …

The Creation Of A Ninth Grade Literacy Course: One Teacher's Experiences In Teaching A Standards-Based Literacy Course, Katie Gray Keating

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

This study examined one teacher’s experience with teaching a ninth grade literacy course. In response to consecutively low reading test scores, the administration in a rural high school in South Central Kentucky established a literacy course for all ninth grade students. This research illustrates the teacher’s implementation and instruction of that course. In addition, the research investigates how the results of a formal reading assessment might be used to improve the reading course in the future.

Using Creativity As A Form Of Intervention For At-Risk-Youth: The Development Of Creativity2day, Tamika T. Lewis

Creativity and Change Leadership Graduate Student Master's Projects

This project is a detailed description of the development of Creativity2Day, the organization and its workshops, its sole purpose is to positively impact the lives of at-risk-youth and the communities they live in. This project provides a synthetized definition of creativity and a detailed outline on how the deliberate use of the Creative Change Leadership Model, Creative Problems Solving, and the Torrance Incubation Model of Teaching and Learning can be used together as a form of micro-level intervention methods, geared towards the positive development of at-risk-youth who attend Title I schools and reside in low-income communities.

The Development Of An Instrument To Measure The Self-Efficacy Of Students Participating In Vex Robotics Competitions, Trevor P. Robinson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

A research study was conducted in the Technology and Engineering Education program at Utah State University. The purpose of the study was to develop a survey instrument to measure the self-confidence of students who have participated in the VEX Robotics Competitions. The survey instrument developed was tested to be appropriate and consistent in measuring the self-confidence of middle school and high school students in the United States. The process to ensure that the survey instrument was appropriate utilized an investigation of the tasks completed by successful VEX Robotics teams through an occupational and task analysis. The investigation utilized expert coaches, …

Teacher Professionalism: A Study Of Professionalism For Religious Educators In The Seminary And Institutes Department Of The Church Educational System, Michael L. Cottle

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This qualitative study investigated Seminary and Institute teachers’ perception of professionalism. To answer the question “What is the perception of seminary and institute teachers and leaders regarding professionalism,” a life history approach was used to explore what experiences and events shaped the participants’ view of professionalism in seminary and institutes. Findings indicated the following: (a) loyalty to the organization is a key attribute for professionalism; (b) positive associations with peers and administrators strengthen professionalism and foster a culture of unity; (c) observation and feedback are critical elements in developing professionally; (d) content mastery is a prerequisite for teachers seeking to …

Cognitive Coaching : The Impact On Teacher Candidates' Teacher Efficacy., Stefanie Wooten Burnett

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the impact Cognitive CoachingSM, a mentoring tool, (a) has on physical education teacher candidates’ teacher efficacy and (b) their perceptions of the impact Cognitive CoachingSM had on the lesson planning and lesson reflection abilities during a student teaching experience. Both quantitative and qualitative measures were employed to determine the impact of Cognitive CoachingSM physical education teacher candidate’s teacher efficacy. The design for this study was a quasi-experimental design with an untreated control group with pre-test and post-test samples (Shadish, Cook & Campbell, 2002). The quantitative date was collected through the Ohio State …

Barriers To Curricular Change In General Education Mathematics At A Large Public Institution, Marcus Jorgensen

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This qualitative study looked for barriers to curricular change in general education mathematics at a large public university (LPU) in the Western United States. The literature showed that a number of national organizations dealing in math education have recommended alternatives to the traditional algebra-intensive curriculum. LPU still relies predominantly on traditional College Algebra as its quantitative literacy (QL) course. With such an algebra-heavy emphasis, students may be missing more relevant and useful mathematics. In addition, the College Algebra course has a low success rate, which becomes a barrier to student retention and graduation. Interviews were conducted with 14 participants who …

Religious Educators' Experiences With Self-Directed Learning In Professional Development: A Qualitative Study, Brandon D. Porter

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

In 2012, Seminaries and Institutes of Religion (S&I), a division of The Church Educational System of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, introduced a self-directed professional development program that allowed educators to obtain two certification credentials by completing 12 certification projects per credential. The purpose of this study was to obtain an understanding of the experiences of seven S&I educators with self-directed learning in doing certification projects.

Personal and contextual factors influenced how self-directed learning for purposes of professional development was experienced by the participants in this study. Understanding program requirements, expectations, and processes, and possessing sufficient motivation …

Volunteering And Social Development Across Cultures: A Credit Bearing Course For The Alliance For Global Education's Global And Public Health Program At Manipal University (India), Katie Jo Walter

Capstone Collection

This course-linked capstone presents full details for the creation, facilitation and evaluation of a new field-based course for the Alliance for Global Education’s (Alliance) Global and Public Health program at Manipal University in India. Operating in partnership with Manipal University’s Volunteer Services Organization (VSO), the course will increase opportunities for participant interaction with people both on and off campus, actively respond to participants’ stated interest in volunteer work, and strengthen institutional ties between the Alliance and Manipal University.

The plan for the course, titled, “Volunteering across cultures: India and the United States”, incorporates best practices and theories from international service …

Elementary Students' Strategies For Solving Visual Logic Tasks, Camille Schulman

Honors Program Theses and Projects

No abstract provided.

Tracking In Middle School Mathematics, Alexis Geisler

Mathematics Graduate Theses

This paper is a review of research pertaining to the issue of tracking in middle and high school mathematics. More focus is given to middle school because this is usually where tracking begins in mathematics. It supports research on the rationale behind detracking our schools and moving towards heterogeneous classrooms. Research behind the psychological effects of tracking is also provided, along with how tracking can segregate our school systems. There is a variety of research on the effect of tracking in mathematics. One of the most prevalent issues is how tracking is detrimental to the low tracked students. It not …

Investigating Secondary School Students’ Views Regarding The Use Of Strategies And Difficulties They Face When Writing In English As The Second Language, Salma Saeed Salem Al Kaabi

Curriculum and Instruction Theses

Learning writing is an important element in language acquisition. Writing is one of the tools of communication and exchanges between cultures. Many students have a negative attitude toward writing and consider writing as the most difficult skill of all. Writing in English is an issue from which many non-native students suffer. This study aims to investigate students' views toward the use of strategies and the challenges they face with writing in English.

This study was conducted in one of the large female high schools in Al Ain. A 45 items structured Likert-scale questionnaire was developed. It was administered to 360 …

Calculator Usage In Secondary Level Classrooms: The Ongoing Debate, Nicole Plummer

Honors College Theses

With technology becoming more prevalent every day, it is imperative that students gain enough experience with different technological tools in order to be successful in the “real-world”. This thesis will discuss the debate and overall support for an increased usage of calculators as tools in the secondary level classroom. When the idea of calculators in the classroom first came to life, many educators were very apprehensive and quite hesitant of this change. Unfortunately, more than 40 years later, there is still hesitation for their usage; and rightfully so. While there are plenty of advantages of calculator use in the classroom, …

Promoting Social And Academic Attainment Through Emotional And Social Skills Development, Aiden Carthy, Sinead Mcgilloway

Conference Papers

No abstract provided.

Autoethnography And Teacher Education: Snapshot Stories Of Cultural Encounter, Maureen F. Legge

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

In this paper I discuss how I framed and wrote an autoethnographic personal narrative of my lived experience as a New Zealand physical education teacher educator in the presence of two cultures, Māori and Pākehā. Central to my qualitative study was writing as a method of inquiry. Using this method I wrote a series of descriptive ‘snapshot stories’ derived from field experiences, over an 11 year period, that involved close and prolonged encounters with physical education teacher education (PETE) students in tertiary classrooms and 4 day marae stays. The storied accounts served as data for self-reflexivity about my role as …

Elementary Christian School Teachers Utilizing Biblical Concepts In Classroom Management, Christy Hill

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This phenomenological study examined biblical concepts utilized by elementary Christian school teachers in classroom management in two Christian schools in Virginia. Items examined included which biblical components were being utilized and how teachers are utilizing them. Determining factors influencing the incorporation of biblical concepts in classroom management and teachers' perceptions of their utilization were also explored. The study used teacher interviews, focus groups, and document reviews. Data analysis was conducted through the use of interview and focus group transcriptions along with as analysis of pertinent documents. Significant statements from the data were coded into themes. Findings included biblical concepts were …

Student Characteristics, Prior Experiences, And The Perception Of Mixed Methods As An Innovation, Sydney E. Brown

Department of Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education: Theses and Other Student Research

There are persistent challenges to teaching mixed methods and innovative solutions are sought in order to address the needs of an increasingly diverse global audience seeking mixed methods instruction. This mixed methods study was conducted to gain insights to course design by more fully understanding the relationships among graduate student characteristics and prior experiences with research approaches with the perceived characteristics of the innovation of mixed methods.

Quantitative and qualitative data was gathered using a self-developed survey. Correlational analyses were done between measures of quantitative, qualitative, mixed methods, and overall prior experience and the perceived innovation characteristics of relative advantage, …