Junior High, Intermediate, Middle School Education and Teaching Commons^™

Transforming Pedagogies: Emerging Contexts And Texts Of Teaching Learning, Dilshad Ashraf

Institute for Educational Development, Karachi

This brief offers recommendations for policy and practice around ensuring continuity of education in emergency situations. It also aims at engaging important stakeholders to assert the need for education in emergencies in countries like Pakistan, which frequently confront natural and human-led disasters. This brief also discusses the need for ‘education in emergencies’ in a ‘low HDI’ developing nation such as Pakistan, where being exposed to natural and human-led disasters seems to be a way of life. It provides an initial platform for those who are interested in understanding the scope of this theme, as well as designing and delivering educational …

Chronicles Of Change : Strengthening Teacher Education In Pakistan, Nida Dossa

Institute for Educational Development, Karachi

A step towards improving education in Pakistan; being able to sit in a classroom, feel safe, learn about how the world works: being able to read a book, make up stories and discover new ideas - these are the basic rights of every child. however, millions of children in Pakistan have never seen a classroom or attended a lesson. Here, educational challenges are innumerable and oftentimes seem insurmountable. STEP - Strengthening Teacher Education in Pakistan works to improve the quality and delivery of elementary education services appropriate to the poor in the country, particularly women and children in Pakistan.

A Study Of Assistive Technology Competencies Of Specialists In Public Schools, Betsy B. Burgos

CCAC Theses and Dissertations

Despite the rapid proliferation of assistive technology implementation, studies have revealed that a number of professionals that provide assistive technology services do not have adequate competencies to recommend and deliver assistive technologies in school settings. The purpose of the study was to examine the competencies of assistive technology specialists in Florida K-12 public schools, and identify training opportunities that may have helped them achieve professional competence in the evaluation and provision of assistive technology devices and services across AT service providers from different preparations.

The study applied quantitative and qualitative methods to determine answers to the following six research questions: …

Teaching Mindfulness To Year Sevens As Part Of Health And Personal Development, Kathy Arthurson

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Recently the adoption of mindfulness or contemplative based approaches has escalated across many sectors, including in education. Proponents argue that mindfulness based teaching programs improve students’ life skills, provide emotional balance, reduce stress and enhance classroom climate. To date though there is little evaluation or knowledge of how young people experience such programs introduced to classroom settings. This paper reports some key insights gained from an independent evaluation of a pilot mindfulness based teaching program implemented (over nine weeks) with a class of thirty, year seven students at a private school in Adelaide. The research methods incorporated a self-completed student …

Parent-Teacher Interactions: Engaging With Parents And Carers, Michelle Ellis, Graeme Lock, Geoff Lummis

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

This study sought to identify factors that parents and teachers described as impacting on their interactions. Previous research indicated that student performance levels increase when parents and teachers work together; however, in practice, there are underlying tensions. The key findings revealed that the nature of parent-teacher interactions was either collaborative or non-collaborative, several activities underpinned these practices, and positive or less than satisfactory outcomes were afforded to students. Furthermore, parents and teachers had similar preferences on what practices made their interactions collaborative; however, they had different views (preferences) on what constituted non-collaborative practices. The findings from this research have implications …

Teachers' Use Of Wikipedia With Their Students, Hagit Meishar-Tal

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

One of the most impressive phenomena in the creation and dissemination of human knowledge in recent years is Wikipedia, an encyclopedia written collaboratively by Web users. Nevertheless, teachers tend to oppose the use of wikipedia by their students and question its reliability. This paper explore the perceptions of k-12 school teachers in Israel towards the quality of the information in wikipedia and the reasoning they hold for these perceptions. Findings show that most of the teachers perceive Wikipedia as an environment of middling to poor reliability, accuracy, and timeliness. Many teachers do not realize how authoritative information is when generated …

Pedagogy Of Curiosity: Initial Explorations Of Instructional Practice In A Critical Thinking And Curious Classroom, Michael Chalukian

Critical and Creative Thinking Capstones Collection

Through research on critical thinking, instructional practice, and curiosity I have developed the Pedagogy of Curiosity. This approach is implemented in the Curious classroom and a workshop for secondary teachers. The Curious classroom creates a structure and focus to encourage and develop curiosity and critical thinking of students. A questioning and research design redefines the learning expectations and the corresponding teacher and student roles in the classroom. An environment is constructed for students to take steps to become autonomous reflective learners.

This synthesis identifies two sources that inform my endeavor: 1) The accountability and results driven focus of No Child …

The Induction Process Of Newly Hired Teachers Into The Existing School Culture Of Niles Community Schools, Zechariah Matthew Hoyt

Dissertations

Problem

Schools, like other organizations, provide capital resources and experiences that promote the professional development of their employees. Professional learning and skill development are essential for educators as they work to improve student achievement. However, conventional professional development often fails to provide a collaborative social construction of knowledge that supports educators in transforming their schools into a strong culture of shared learning. This is especially evident when induction programs do not provide collaborative environments for new teachers to work with each other and other experienced teachers. This study explored the induction of newly hired personnel within a district located in …

Developing Culturally Competent Teachers: An International Student Teaching Field Experience, Michelle Salmona, Margaret Partlo, Dan Kaczynski, Simon N. Leonard

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

This study offers a theoretical construct for better understanding how experiential learning enables student teachers to acquire social and cultural variation skills, develop cultural empathy in the K-12 classroom, and the transference of these skills to new educational situations. An Australian and United States research team used a phenomenological approach to explore the connections between the skills student teachers acquire and the application of these newly developed skills to professional practices. Participants were a group of United States pre-teachers who enrolled in a 5 week teaching experience in Australia. Findings show that participation in cultural based events is part of …

Pathways To Professional Growth: Investigating Upper Primary School Teachers’ Perspectives On Learning To Teach Algebra, Karina J. Wilkie, Doug Clarke

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

This paper discusses upper primary school teachers’ perspectives on changes to their knowledge and practice through participation in a design-based research project. It analyses their experiences using Clarke & Hollingsworth’s (2002) empirically-founded model for professional growth to understand more about the mechanisms for change that might support teachers in learning to teach a challenging but important aspect of mathematics – algebra. Ten teachers were involved in cycles of collaborative planning, team-teaching, evaluating, and revising five lessons for their classes on developing functional thinking through pattern generalisation over one year. The teachers referred to observations of teaching in action, and modification …

Preparedness Of Pre-Service Teachers For Inclusive Education In The Solomon Islands, Umesh Sharma, Janine Simi, Chris Forlin

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Recent policy changes in the Pacific Islands have seen a strong emphasis on implementing inclusive education. Preparing teachers for this change in education will be essential if they are to have the knowledge, skills and understandings so that they can become inclusive practitioners. Pre-service teacher education will play a critical role in supporting this process. This paper considers the perceptions of pre-service teachers undertaking the first year of the Diploma of Teaching in the one university in the Solomon Islands. This is the only university that prepares teachers to work across the entire archipelago. Data are collected pre and post …

Factors In Instructional Decision-Making, Ratings Of Evidence And Intended Instructional Practices Of Australian Final Year Teacher Education Students, Mark Carter, Jennifer Stephenson, Toni Hopper

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

There has been increasing interest in an evidence-based approach to education in Australia but relatively little research has provided relevant data on knowledge of the evidence base for instructional practices among teachers preparing to enter the profession. Final year teacher education students (N = 290) in 15 Australian tertiary institutions were surveyed on their understanding of the strength of evidence for 14 instructional strategies and their intended frequency of use of the strategies following graduation. They were also asked to rate the importance of factors they considered in instructional decision-making. Empirical evidence was important in selection of instructional practices but …

A Stem Narrative: 15 Years In The Making., Susan Blackley, Jennifer Howell

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Since its inception in the late 1990s, STEM has continued to attract attention and sizeable funding in the US, UK, and Australia. This paper narrates the development of the STEM movement, and analyses both the influences that have progressed its evolution and those that have stymied authentic STEM practices. The pervading rhetoric of “STEM crisis” is considered through a global lens, and is resolved as a geo-political phenomenon. The strident voice of the US in the STEM narrative is tempered by investigating the approach to STEM in European, Asian, and developing countries. Two perspectives are described in the narrative: the …

Lessons Learned: Insights Into One Teacher’S Experience Working With Karen Refugee Students In The United States, Daniel J. Gilhooly

Journal of Southeast Asian American Education and Advancement

This study is informed by funds of knowledge and culturally responsive teaching studies that aim to explore and legitimize the cultural knowledge immigrant children bring to their communities and schools. Consequently, this paper specifically addresses issues related to the educational experiences of Karen children and their parents from one American teacher/researcher who has worked with the Karen for the past four years. In aggregate, this paper addresses issues germane to Karen education including; (1) background information on Karen educational experiences prior to resettlement, including a review of their journey from Thailand to the U.S.; (2) important characteristics of Karen culture; …

Has Teacher Tenure’S Time Passed?, Charles J. Russo

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

A recent trial court order (Vergara v. State of California 2014), which Governor Jerry Brown has already appealed (Nagourney 2014), has sent shock waves through the ranks of teachers and their unions because it threatens what is perhaps educators’ most cherished prize: tenure.

In Vergara, the court invalidated five statutes addressing tenure, procedural safeguards relating to teacher dismissal, and seniority as violating the equal protection clause in the California constitution. The court ruled that the challenged laws “impose a real and appreciable impact on students’ fundamental right to equality of education and that they impose a disproportionate burden on poor …

Educative Curricula And Improving The Science Pck Of Teachers In Middle School Settings In Rural And Remote Australia, Arthur Townsend

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Science is one of seven-mandated Key Learning Areas (KLAs) Foundation to Year 10 of the new Australian National Curriculum (ACARA, 2012). Not only, therefore, is science to be offered in every school as part of the curriculum, there is also the expectation that science is to be taught well to all students regardless of location, gender, cultural background or socio-economic status (ACARA, 2012). Studying science provides benefits to individuals by developing their scientific literacy skills (Goodrum, Hackling & Rennie, 2001; Hackling & Prain, 2008). Its study also benefits the national economy by equipping students with the innovative, inventive, and creative …

The Impact Of The Sra Corrective Reading Program On Standardized Testing, Tony Oyola

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The implementation of effective reading programs for special education students is paramount for school success due to the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) and the reauthorization of Individual with Disabilities Education Act. One local school implemented the Science Research Associates Corrective Reading Program (SRACRP) because their special education students did not meet the required proficient or advanced reading scores on the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment (PSSA). The purpose of this quantitative within-group study was to determine if special and regular education students demonstrated growth in reading comprehension after the implementation of the SRACRP. The theoretical foundation …

An Examination Of Teachers' Reading Instructional Challenges In An Alternative School Setting, Leslie Bowen Retchko

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

In a suburban alternative school, educators of at-risk students reading below grade level often struggled to provide effective reading instruction. As a result, these students were likely to continue to experience academic difficulties, which could limit their career options and their opportunities to contribute to the betterment of society. This study addressed the gap between reading strategies teachers actually used in the classroom and the reading strategies they learned during professional development. The research questions focused on the instructional challenges teachers experienced while working with struggling readers in an alternative school setting. Mastery learning theory and the adult adragogical theory …

School Bullying And Teacher Professional Development, Demita Sidonia Parson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Bullying has become a serious concern in many American public middle schools in recent years. Inadequate professional development (PD) in bullying prevention and response strategies has compounded this problem. The overarching purpose of this study was to increase understanding of the growing problem of school bullying. Bronfenbrenner's socioecological theory, which states that environment and relationships influence student behavior, served as the conceptual framework for this qualitative study. Guiding research questions, grounded in socioecological theory, were used to examine middle school teachers' views of PD and their perceived skills in responding to or preventing bullying. Through purposeful sampling, 8 middle school …

Middle School Teachers' Experiences With Cross-Curricular Connections At The Incident Level, Melita M. Penchalk

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Many curricular innovations, including cross-curricular teaching, are started in schools without adequate teacher preparation and support, reducing the effectiveness of the interventions in supporting student learning. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to describe the implementation of the cross-curricular connections teaching technique in middle schools. Research questions focused on how middle school teachers experienced implementation of cross-curricular teaching at the incident level and how teachers perceived cross-curricular teaching and its long-term value. Myers-Briggs personality type theory informed the study, supporting the postulation that teachers are more comfortable teaching from their personality types. Data from 10 middle school teachers …