Educational Methods Commons^™

Brigance Transition Skills Inventory, Jonna L. Bobzien

Human Movement Studies & Special Education Faculty Publications

[Introduction] The BRIGANCE Transition Skills Inventory (TSI) is one of the assessment tools within the BRIGANCE family of assessment instruments. The TSI is a compilation of two previously published assessments, the Employability Skills Inventory and the Life Skills Inventory, and involves significant content additions and updates. The TSI consists of a series of more than 100 criterion-referenced assessments targeting skills necessary for students with special needs as they begin post-secondary transition preparations (Curriculum Associates, 2010). The TSI measures skills and transition service needs in four key areas: Academic Skills (e.g., speaking, writing, math), Post-Secondary Opportunities (e.g., interests, communication, technology), Independent …

E-Learning Implementation Strategies For An Ict-Challenged Environment : Case Of The University Of Ghana, Legon, Isaiah T. Awidi

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

E-learning implementation in higher education continues to gain prominence in both developed and developing countries, and while most universities in ICT-rich environments are exploring different ways of using ICT and multimedia resources to enhance teaching and learning, the same cannot be said about ICT-challenged environments. Nevertheless, the question of successful and sustainable e-learning implementation continues to remain a challenge, particularly in ICT-challenged environments.

The primary purpose of this research was to examine policy and strategy issues that have influenced the process of e-learning implementation at the University of Ghana (UG), given that previous ICT and e-learning initiatives failed to improve …

Improving Classroom Discourse In Inquiry-Based Primary Science Education, Prudence Smith

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Teachers‟ capacity to use classroom discourse to deepen student learning through sustained conversation is considered crucial to increasing students‟ intellectual development. Learners actively construct knowledge and develop understandings from their shared experiences and via interaction with others (Driver, Asoko, Leach, Mortimer & Scott, 1994). However, talk that fosters students‟ capacity to reason is lacking in many classrooms (Alexander, 2006) and, what is more, teachers tend to control the discourse by asking a predominance of closed questions and using a question-answer recitation script which limits the exploration of students‟ ideas (Nystrand, Gamoran, Kachy, & Prendergast, 1997). The purpose of this study …

Investigating The Impact Of Interactive Applets On Students’ Understanding Of Parameter Changes To Parent Functions: An Explanatory Mixed Methods Study, Robin R. Mcclaran

Theses and Dissertations--Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Education

The technology principle in the Principles and Standards for School Mathematics (NCTM, 2000) states that technology plays an important role in how teachers teach mathematics and in how students learn mathematics. The purpose of this sequential explanatory mixed-methods study was to examine the impact of interactive applets on students’ understanding of parameter changes to parent functions. Students in the treatment classes were found to have statistically significantly higher posttest scores than students in the control classes. Although the data analysis showed a statistically significant difference between classes on procedural understanding, no statistically significant difference was found with regard to conceptual …

The Use Of A Narrative Simulation In Rural Residential Fire Prevention: A Preliminary Study Of Changes In Behavioral Intention, William Clark Goetz

Theses and Dissertations--Curriculum and Instruction

Rural Kentucky residents suffer twice as many fire residential deaths than the national average. Fire prevention programs are primarily aimed at elementary school children however these children do not make the decisions nor take the precautions necessary to alter these conditions; their adult parents do. There is little research into the development of fire safety instructional interventions that need to reach these rural at-risk adults. In this study, a well-designed story simulation Uncle Charlie’s Christmas was developed to provide an instructional intervention to prevent injury and fatality from rural residential fires.
An intervention-control repeated measure research design was conducted to …

Experiences Of Speech-Language Pathology Graduate Students: An Exploratory Phenomenological Study, Anysia J. Ensslen

Theses and Dissertations--Educational Leadership Studies

Within the past decade little research has been conducted in the United States to examine the preparedness of beginning speech-language pathologists; the seminal article used for this research study comes from the United Kingdom (Horton, Byng, Bunning, & Pring, 2004). Literature from the past few decades indicates that there may be deficiencies in the way that beginning speech-language pathologists are being trained clinically.

The review of the literature suggests that the field may lack a clear and broadly supported learning theory or framework for the clinical supervision and training of speech-language pathology graduate students. The literature further supports the importance …

The Teaching And Learning Of Word Problems In Beginning Algebra : A Nigerian (Lagos State) Study, Omolola A. Ladele

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

At both the junior and senior secondary school levels in Nigeria, student performance in mathematics examinations has been poor. Within the context of large classes, with inadequate facilities, and teaching and learning in a second language, algebra and algebra word problems are introduced to students during their first year of junior secondary school. The transition from primary school arithmetic to the use of the algebraic letter is challenging to students and it is important that teachers should know the likely difficulties and misconceptions students may have as they begin algebra (Welder, 2012).

In this study, the impact of a teacher …

Tablet Pc Use In Teaching And Learning : A Case Study, Andrew Stewart

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

With the emergence of the use of the traditional (non-touch screen) notebook computer in the classroom, different teaching styles and equipment have been introduced. Teachers have started to use the Notebook PC to support their teaching. They now have the ability to gather and use a far greater range of materials in the classroom with little distraction.

The introduction of the touch screen Tablet PC has brought another dimension to the way technology can be used in the classroom. This study seeks to investigate the ways in which Tablet PC technology has been used to enhance the learning of students …

The Role Of Heads Of Departments In Enhancing The Quality Of Education In Secondary Schools In Tanzania, Perpetua J. Urio

Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences

Heads of department are perceived as instructional leaders. This paper is based on a study that aimed to find out how heads of departments in Tanzanian secondary schools deal with their tasks in enhancing the quality of education, and the support accorded to them by the school administrative system in the performance of their duties. The study was conducted in Arusha and Coast regions, comprising a sample of 72 respondents from eight secondary schools. Data were collected through interviews, questionnaires and documentary review. Data collected were subjected to content analysis and numerical data were summarized into tables. Findings revealed that, …

Variation In Job Satisfaction Between Public And Private Secondary School Teachers In Tanzania: A Comparative Study At Kinondoni District, Faustine B. Masath

Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences

In improving the quality of education in secondary schools, teachers’ job satisfaction is vital and an inevitable component. In Tanzania, however, the level of job satisfaction of secondary school teachers is not clear; and so is how public and private secondary schools differ in their level of job satisfaction. This paper aims to compare the level of job satisfaction between public and private secondary school teachers. The paper is based on a descriptive cross-sectional survey research design, which employed a sample of 275 respondents from 10 selected secondary schools in Kinondoni district. Teacher Job Satisfaction Scale (TJSS) and documentary review …

Exploring Supports Provided For Student Eportfolio Development In A Professional Development Context, Muireann Okeeffe

Articles

This small scale study aimed to explore and establish if support strategies implemented to enhance student ePortfolios were helpful to students and to identify useful ways of supporting ePortfolio development with future cohorts of students. This action research study was informed through focus group discussion and individual interviews with students.

The importance of reflection for the development professional practice and of creative abilities is discussed. The substantial benefits of creativity within education are investigated and characteristics of creativity that might be developed with students’ ePortfolios are revealed. Specifically this paper seeks to foster Crafts (2011) four characteristics of creativity, pluralities, …

New Dwc Syllabus Using Nonwestern Sources, Aubrey Moore

Education Student Scholarship

This project presents a new, annotated syllabus for the Development of Western Civilization (DWC) curriculum at Providence College. The syllabus follows most of the same topics discussed in 3rd semester DWC, but instead uses almost all nonwestern sources for reading material. The purpose of the project was to gain a better understanding of western civilization while providing an alternative to how people learn about the society they live in, to better understand other societies, and help to put historical events into a broader context.

The Role Of Interdisciplinary Gis And Data Curation Librarians In Enhancing Authentic Scientific Research In The Classroom, Benjamin D. Branch, Michael Fosmire

Libraries Faculty and Staff Presentations

Data science is a recently evolved area of scientific inquiry, where data, often collected by others, is analyzed by independent investigators to draw new conclusions. As such, data literacy needs to be incorporated into authentic research activities. The earth sciences in particular have a trove of data that resides in national data centers as well as individual investigators’ labs, which can be repurposed to provide the inputs for students to make their own inquiries into the data. With the amount of data available, students can make more substantive conclusions than if relying just on data they’ve collected themselves.

A Truly Radical Idea In Social Studies Education: Teach The State Standards, Richard Gardiner

Journal of Contemporary Research in Education

State social studies standards are reflective of the concepts of Bloom’s taxonomy, emphasizing the development of higher order thinking skills. Standardized social studies tests, on the other hand, are not reflective of Bloom’s taxonomy and almost exclusively test for memorization and identification. In other words, the standards target very different objectives than the standardized tests are designed to assess. If, then, the central objective is to achieve adequate or higher standardized test scores, we must admit that it is not “standards-based” education that is desired, but rather test-focused instruction.

Searching For The Right Way To Begin Class, Part Ii, John D. Lawry

Psychology Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Required Features Of A Virtual Classroom Tool For Use In Higher Education, Arnold Hensman

Articles

The integration of virtual-classroom systems into the arsenal of e-learning tools represents a major evolution in the landscape of modern distance education. For many courses, standard virtual learning environments (VLEs) provide only a foundation upon which to base a distance learning programme. However, synchronous live online-teaching software such as Microsoft Office Communicator and Adobe Connect allow educators to simulate a real-time classroom environment over the internet like never before. Since these tools are being used more and more within higher education, questions must be asked about how effective they ultimately can be in meeting student learning requirements. More importantly, what …

Academics' Views On Personalised E-Learning In Higher Education, Eileen O'Donnell, Mary Sharp, Vincent Wade, Liam O'Donnell

Conference Papers

The challenges for academics in meeting the learning requirements of students are many and varied. This research focuses on the concept of personalised learning, where activities are specifically selected to suit the learning requirements of individual students. The creation of personalised learning activities to suit every student’s learning needs, are not easily achieved. A survey was conducted in June 2012 to determine academics awareness of, and views on, the ‘novel teaching approach’ of personalised e-learning in higher education. Forty academics participated in this study. 60% of academic respondents agreed with the statement: “There is a need to personalise e-learning to …

Species Shout-Outs From Abdul To Zebra: Encouraging Nonmajors To Communicate In The Biology Classroom, Christina P. Colon

Publications and Research

No abstract provided.

Blended Learning In Anesthesia Education: Current State And Future Model, Jaya Kannan, Viji Kurup

Jandrisevits Faculty Publications

Purpose of review: Educators in anesthesia residency programs across the country are facing a number of challenges as they attempt to integrate blended learning techniques in their curriculum. Compared with the rest of higher education, which has made advances to varying degrees in the adoption of online learning anesthesiology education has been sporadic in the active integration of blended learning. The purpose of this review is to discuss the challenges in anesthesiology education and relevance of the Universal Design for Learning framework in addressing them.

Recent findings: There is a wide chasm between student demand for online education and the …

Collaborating To Improve Inquiry-Based Teaching In Elementary Science And Mathematics Methods Courses, Paula A. Magee, Ryan Flessner

Scholarship and Professional Work – Education

This study examines the effect of promoting inquiry-based teaching (IBT) through collaboration between a science methods course and mathematics methods course in an elementary teacher education program. During the collaboration, preservice elementary teacher (PST) candidates experienced 3 different types of inquiry as a way to foster increased understanding of inquiry based teaching (IBT). The experiences included a PST driven science inquiry and a mathematics inquiry where PSTs were learners and a science inquiry where PSTs were teachers. During and following the semester of the collaboration, data were collected to assess the impact of the inquiry experiences on the PSTs’ understanding …