Pre-Elementary, Early Childhood, Kindergarten Teacher Education Commons^™

Teacher Perspectives Of The Implementation Of The Journeys Early Literacy Program, Milton Bernard Reese

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

A small rural school district in the southwestern part of the United States required teachers to provide highly effective literacy instruction by implementing an evidence-based reading program called Journeys. With consistently low reading achievement, it was unclear whether teachers were implementing Journeys as prescribed. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore teacher implementation of the Journeys program for students at an elementary school in the district. The theoretical framework used to guide the study was Clay’s emergent literacy theory. The conceptual framework included 5 strands of the Journeys reading curriculum, which was derived from Clay’s theory. A …

Putting Educational Reform Into Practice: The Impact Of The No Child Left Behind Act On Students, Teachers, And Schools, Timothy Song

CMC Senior Theses

This thesis seeks to investigate the effects of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) on U.S. student achievement and teacher effectiveness. By combining the results from various data sources, I am able to indicate the levels of student preparedness, school spending, and specific classroom practices. After an analysis of my results, I suggest that NCLB has found moderate success in increasing the level of math preparedness for younger students from historically disadvantaged backgrounds. On the other hand, the data also suggests that there have been no statistically significant gains in reading achievement after the implementation of NCLB. Additionally, spending …

Teacher Perceptions Of The Daily 5 Literacy Routine: A Case Study, Kim Penland

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Even with extensive literacy research, routines, and policy modifications, many elementary students are not provided with the needed tools to develop independent literacy skills. Therefore, the purpose of this qualitative case study was to examine what independent literacy behaviors are developing in first through fourth grade students to determine whether the Daily 5 framework is developing the desired independent literacy skills in those students. Based on Vygotsky's social development theory, the Daily 5 literacy routine teaches students five essential habits to develop independent literacy abilities across various grade levels. This qualitative study's research questions were developed to examine what independent …

Exploring Early Childhood Teachers' Beliefs And Perceptions About The Use Of Technology In The Classroom, Sharron Hallanger

All Master's Theses

The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore how the professional beliefs and perceptions of teachers in early childhood education (ECE) influenced their acceptance for the use of interactive technology as a learning tool for children. Eight primary grade teachers at a rural school district in Washington State were interviewed. Of the eight ECE teachers, two had no student technology use in their classrooms. The second group of two teachers had some student technology use on a weekly basis, and the last group of four teachers utilized daily student technology use in their classrooms. The sample subjects were interviewed …

Discipline Policy And Preschool Special Education Students' Social Skills, Amanda Lee Tamagni

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Preschool special education students lack of personal-social skills is affecting their kindergarten readiness and placing them at risk for exposure to school discipline in a large school district in the Southeastern United States. The purpose of this quantitative study was to examine the relationship between the quality of school discipline policies and personal-social skills of preschool special education students within the focus district. Ecological systems theory provided the framework for the study. Data collection included archived personal-social skills scores, as measured by the Battelle Developmental Inventory 2 (BDI 2), of 354 preschool special education students. Four trained educators rated the …

Teachers' Perspectives Of Their Engagement Of Fathers In Early Childhood Classrooms, Tymeshia L. Gadson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Despite positive effects of parent engagement on children's school success, prior research into parent engagement has relied almost exclusively on interactions by mothers and has not included fathers. The purpose of this basic qualitative study was to explore the perspectives of preschool teachers regarding their engagement with fathers of children in their classrooms. The conceptual framework was Epstein's 6 types of parental involvement. Three research questions, regarding teachers' perspectives of father engagement, teachers' reported efforts to increase the engagement of fathers, and the barriers teachers describe in increasing fathers' engagement, form the basis of this study. This was a qualitative …

Factors Influencing Teacher Burnout And Retention Strategies, Sean Brady Scott

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Teacher attrition has become a significant problem within the field of education. Despite research reporting retention strategies and programs that can decrease this trend, teachers continue to burnout of the workforce due to stress and an inability to cope with teaching conditions. This research article explores the underlying problem of burnout, including the symptoms and extent in which they manifest, as well as possible strategies to decrease attrition and keep teachers in the classroom. By compiling research that suggests tested programs and supports that help retain teachers, both individuals and schools can explore these avenues further in hopes of combatting …

Art As A Mediating Tool: Children And Learning In A Music And Arts-Based After School Program, Claudia Saldana

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

This study explores the experiences of primarily Latina/o children with learning music in a Music and Arts-Based Program (MABP) the context of a low-income neighborhood on the U.S- Mexico border. This year-long ethnographic study was conducted in an after-school art program in the Rio Grande Elementary School, in a low-income neighborhood located within one-mile of the U.S.-Mexico border. The purpose of the study is to understand how music and art can be used as a mediating tool for children to construct social and cognitive learning within a culturally diverse community, thus, enhancing the social environment in which they interact. The …

Developing Children’S Physical Literacy: How Well Prepared Are Prospective Teachers?, Judith Dinham, Paul Williams

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

While the known health impacts of sedentary lifestyles have focused attention on children’s outdoor activity, the development of their physical literacy – the physiological, social, cultural, cognitive, expressive, and psychological dimensions of their physicality – is much less in focus.

Developing children’s physical literacy is embedded in the Early Years Learning Framework and Primary curriculum: Health and Physical Education, and the performing arts subjects within The Arts. This study asks “How well prepared are pre-service teachers to implement a program that contributes to developing children’s physical literacy?”

This mixed methods study includes an environmental scan of BEd courses at 12 …

“That’S What You Want To Do As A Teacher, Make A Difference, Let The Child Be, Have High Expectations”: Stories Of Becoming, Being And Unbecoming An Early Childhood Teacher, Jessica Ciuciu, Natalie Robertson

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

This article explores the experiences of four individuals who changed careers into early childhood teaching in Victoria, Australia and later left the profession. The study was conducted with a narrative inquiry approach and reveals insight into motivations for becoming an early childhood teacher (ECT), experiences of being an ECT and factors that lead to un-becoming an ECT. Participants were motivated by pragmatic reasons such as career advancement and family-work compatibility alongside intrinsic interest when becoming an ECT. They entered the profession eager to support children’s learning and development. However, their experiences compromised their health and wellbeing and inhibited them from …

Does Waldorf Education Offer A Well-Rounded And Integrated Experience That Prepares Students For Higher Grades And Life In General?, Jacqueline A. Stratton

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

This thesis research focuses on the study of Waldorf education and how it benefits the whole child. It begins by looking at Rudolf Steiner’s Waldorf educational program and its foundational history and then takes an in depth look at the key elements of its rich philosophy and pedagogy. The literature review focuses on the key question, ‘Does this 100 year-old teaching philosophy encourage a more well-rounded and integrated educational experience than traditional public schools?’ The review highlights four broad topics in relationship to Waldorf education. These include: Educating the Whole Child; Education for the Three Stages of Childhood; Early Childhood …

The Effects Of A Teacher Coaching Model On Preschool Suspensions And Expulsions, Jody Jeanne Bering

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

In early childhood centers, students with disabilities are being suspended and expelled, leaving them with no place to attend school to learn with their peers or to receive early intervention special education services. This study was designed to determine the effects of coaching on the number of suspensions and expulsions of students with disabilities attending early childhood centers. The framework for this study was based on the theory of Conjoint Behavioral Coaching. The research question was: What are the effects of a coaching intervention by early intervention teachers to early childhood teachers on the number of suspensions and expulsions of …

Teachers' Perceptions Of Implementing Differentiated Instruction For English Language Learners, Mary E. Pegram

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Administrators and teachers are concerned that English Language Learners (ELLs) in an urban elementary school in a southern part of the United States are not meeting required state standards in reading. Teachers have indicated that they do not always know how to differentiate instruction for ELLs. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to investigate teachers' implementation of differentiated instruction for ELLs. This research study was guided by the conceptual framework of Vygotsky's zone of proximal development and Tomlinson's theory of implementing differentiated instruction. The research questions investigated teachers' perceptions of differentiated instruction and their professional development for mediating …

Dissertation: Professionalism In Trinidad And Tobago's Early Childhood Sector: A Case Study, Cynthia Juliana Celestin

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This case study explored early childhood practitioners' response to government mandates for increased professionalism in Trinidad and Tobago; the impact of mandates on their personal and professional lives; and their conceptions of professionalism. The study addressed government concerns about lack of professionalism in Early Childhood Care and Education; informed policymakers of the myriad challenges therein; and included practitioners' voices in international discourse on professionalism. Change theory, systems thinking, and voice elicitation formed the conceptual framework for understanding changes needed to increase professionalism in the sector. The meaning of professionalism as defined in mandates; difference between practitioners and officials' definitions of …

Self-Injurious Behavior And Social Media Use By Adolescents, Victoria Lynn Fye

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

There is a surprising dearth of research related to the phenomenon of self-injurious behavior/nonsuicidal self-injury (SIB/NSSI), such as cutting. Research conducted on SIB has revealed that this maladaptive behavior is more common among adolescents than other populations. The act of posting SIB on social media deserves research attention, as it seems to contradict what had previously been considered a very private behavior. The goal of this qualitative case study was to better understand why adolescents engage in SIB as well as investigate why they post these behaviors on social media. Merton's theory of social strain and anomie, which focuses on …

Mandarin Teachers' Experiences Using Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge In Early Childhood Classrooms, Francesca Pugh-Opher

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The focus of this research study was on the experiences and perceptions of Mandarin Chinese teachers who used technologies and innovative instructional methods to teach second language skills to young learners. The conceptual framework drew on 3 theories: (a) Vygotsky’s sociocultural learning theory, (b) Schӧn’s action theory, and (c) Mishra and Koehler’s technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK). The research questions focused on the experiences of early childhood teachers integrating TPACK to teach Mandarin Chinese and how do early childhood teachers perceive the use of instructional methods to teach Mandarin Chinese. Purposeful sampling was used to identify 8 Mandarin Chinese language …

Early Childhood Education Trainers' Knowledge And Use Of Andragogical Principles, Kimberly Thornton

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Early childhood education (ECE) teachers often lack the experience and skills to provide children with supports necessary to foster academic and social skill development. Professional development can improve ECE teachers' skills, but ECE trainers often lack understanding of adult learning principles, known as andragogy. Knowles' conceptual framework of andragogy was used to explore the knowledge and use of andragogical principles of 8 ECE trainers selected via criterion-based purposive sampling. The research questions focused on ECE trainers' knowledge and use of andragogical principles. Three cases, each consisting of 2 or 3 live professional development trainings for early childhood educators, were used …

Characteristics Of Successful Early Childhood Educational Leaders, Darla Tucker

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The problem that precipitated this study was the marked differences among early childhood education leaders in the quality of leadership for private early childhood entities as indicated by a voluntary quality rating improvement system in a Midwestern state. The scholarly literature lacks studies on characteristics of high-€quality leadership in early childhood education. The purpose of this qualitative descriptive case study was to explore characteristics of quality early childhood leadership based on examination of successful early childhood programs using leadership trait theory as a conceptual framework. Research questions were designed to examine characteristics of successful early childhood leaders based on the …

Teacher Biases As An Influence On Early Childhood Assessments, Crystal Mason

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Teacher perspectives and judgments of students' race and gender are known to influence their assessment of primary and secondary students' academic achievements. However, little is known about the effect on children's academic achievement of preschool teacher perspectives and judgments of students' race and gender, which forms the basis for this study. The purpose of this study was to analyze teacher assessment of preschool children's mathematics and science skills on the Desired Results Developmental Profile (DRDP) and Teacher Strategies GOLD (TSG), along with teacher comments written in preparation for each child's parent-teacher conference, to determine if there was a relationship between …

Stakeholder Perspectives On Teacher Attrition In Private Early Childhood Schools In India, Swathi Sandesh Menon

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Teacher attrition is a problem that has consequences for children and schools in many countries; children are affected negatively both emotionally and intellectually, while schools suffer setbacks, such as financial stress and disruption of the learning environment. This multiple case study explored the perspectives of stakeholders in India regarding how teacher attrition in private early childhood schools influenced students, teachers, parents, school leaders, and schools, as well as the factors that stakeholders identified as important for teacher retention in private early childhood education. The conceptual framework was Bronfenbrenner's ecological systems theory. Data were collected through interviews with teachers and school …