Secondary Education and Teaching Commons^™

Preservice English Teachers’ Evolving Conceptions Of 21st-Century Writing, Amber Jensen

Teaching/Writing: The Journal of Writing Teacher Education

This study used stimulated-recall interviews throughout four secondary English preservice teachers’ (PSTs) semester-long student teaching internships to examine how critical teaching moments shaped their evolving conceptions of 21st-century writing. The article first describes the participants’ collective definitions of features and experiences of 21st-century writing in the ELA classroom, focusing specifically on how they understood digital and multimodal composition. It then examines two case studies that demonstrate how PSTs’ teaching experiences destabilized, challenged, and contradicted their emerging definitions. Findings suggest that English educators may engage PSTs in conceptualizing nuanced and flexible 21st-century writing pedagogies as they construct field experiences as reflective …

The Dimensions Of Teachers Who Write And The Essence Of A Writing Life, Shari L. Daniels, Pamela Beck

Teaching/Writing: The Journal of Writing Teacher Education

The purpose of this grounded theory case study was to explore the perceptions among ten K-12 teachers who teach writing and also write themselves. What are the key essentials for teachers to sustain a writing life? What habits of mind or attitudes are necessary for teachers to sustain a writing life? Interviews served as the primary data source along with writing artifacts from the participants’ own writing life. Findings indicate that teacher-writers committed to a writing life do so for the purpose of 1) discovering meaning, 2) connections to others 3) commitment to learning and 4) well-being, with an overall …

A Spiritual Vision For Catholic Educator Prep In A Time Of Disruption: A Reflective Essay, Angela T. Moret, Ronald R. O'Dwyer S.J.

COVID-19 and Catholic Schools

This essay reflects on the spiritual lessons learned as a Catholic graduate-level teacher prep program guided novice teachers through the first months of the COVID-19 pandemic. We observed the importance of articulating a clear spiritual vision rooted in scripture, history, and personal experience. The guiding spiritual lens has been the Emmaus story which helps us look to the past and to the future as we form and support early-career educators in Catholic schools.

Covid And Clinical Practice: Now Is The Time To Engage Future Educators, April Buschelman

COVID-19 and Catholic Schools

After a tumultuous end to the 2019-2020 school year, it is more important than ever to cultivate new teachers in the field of education. Combining the experience of veteran teachers with the eagerness and adaptability of students in clinical practice (student teaching) a new form of co-teaching may emerge for the fall semester that covers both in classroom and virtual classroom options. Student teachers experienced the student side of virtual learning during the spring semester and are able to offer valuable insight and knowledge for school communities. This article provides five guidelines for how teachers can mentor clinical practitioners during …

A Spiritual Vision For Catholic Educator Prep In A Time Of Disruption: A Reflective Essay, Angela T. Moret, Ronald R. O'Dwyer S.J.

Journal of Catholic Education

This essay reflects on the spiritual lessons learned as a Catholic graduate-level teacher prep program guided novice teachers through the first months of the COVID-19 pandemic. We observed the importance of articulating a clear spiritual vision rooted in scripture, history, and personal experience. The guiding spiritual lens has been the Emmaus story which helps us look to the past and to the future as we form and support early-career educators in Catholic schools.

Covid And Clinical Practice: Now Is The Time To Engage Future Educators, April K. Buschelman

Journal of Catholic Education

After a tumultuous end to the school year, it is more important than ever to cultivate new teachers in the field of education. Combining the experience of veteran teachers with the eagerness and adaptability of students in clinical practice (student teaching) a new form of co-teaching may emerge for the fall semester that covers both in classroom and virtual classroom options. Student teachers experienced the student side of virtual learning during the spring semester and are able to offer valuable insight and knowledge for school communities. This article provides five guidelines for how teachers can mentor clinical practitioners during the …

Reflections On The Eating Of Bologna Sandwiches: A Memoir, Benjamin M. Raphael

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Reflections on the Eating of Bologna Sandwiches is a memoir project intended to give light to my experiences teaching in a small public school located in the South Bronx. These experiences are directed to a general “second” person who takes the form of “you” and is intended to act as a general stand-in for the student population of this school, similar to the “you” used by James Baldwin in his seminal work “My Dungeon Shook”. This “you” is meant to breakdown the wall between the reader and the student population, allowing one to occupy another and in the process develop …

The Relationship Between The Next Generation Content Area Reading Professional Development Program On The Effectiveness Of Teaching Literacy Strategies In High School Biology Classes, Tia Pridgen Brown

Dissertations

The need for effective content area reading teachers have continued to increase since the introduction of one public school districts’ Content Area Reading Professional Development (CAR-PD) in 2006. In 2011, modifications were made to improve the program, and it became known as the Next Generation Content Area Reading Professional Development (NGCAR-PD). The purpose of this program evaluation is to investigate the relationship between NGCAR-PD certified Biology teachers and their ability to implement reading strategies with science content effectively. The context of this inquiry is a mid-sized public school district that has implemented the program since 2006 at the middle and …

The Construction Of Student Mathematical Identity And Its Relationship To Academic Achievement, Ann Trescott

Dissertations

The California university and state college systems (UC and CSU) are committed to accepting a diverse student body. Although there has been some growth in the percentage of minority students admitted each year, a low number of minority and socioeconomically disadvantaged students meet minimum entrance requirements. For example, in 2018, only 33% of socioeconomically disadvantaged African American students and 39% Hispanic/Latinx students who graduated from California public high schools met minimum UC/CSU requirements (CDE, 2019).

Explanations for ineligibility include the fact that many high school students have not completed the requisite mathematics classes due in part to the inequitable practice …

Exploring Career Change Transitions Through A Dialogic Conceptualization Of Science Teacher Identity, Lara Smetana, Ali Kushki

Education: School of Education Faculty Publications and Other Works

Research into the construct of science teacher identity has gained momentum over the past decade in an effort to achieve a more comprehensive, holistic understanding of teacher learning and development. As yet few studies have examined the unique identity challenges of science teacher career changers. Akkerman and Meijer’s (2011) dialogical approach to the conceptualization of teacher identity informed this longitudinal, qualitative study exploring the different identity aspects, or I-positions, of two individuals who had changed careers to teach high-school biology. The study identified moments of disequilibrium experienced by the participants and explored how they each eventually restored equilibrium. Analysis included …

Exploring Teacher-Parent Communication: A Qualitative Analysis Of Secondary Early Career Educators' Experiences, Kama J. Konda-Varilek

Doctorate in Education

Teacher-parent communication (TPC) is considered a professional responsibility for all teachers, yet it is most often associated with teachers of elementary-aged students; comparatively less is known about how secondary teachers communicate with parents or how they learn to do so. The qualitative study conducted in May 2020 used semi-structured interviews to examine how South Dakota secondary early career educators (ECEs) learned to communicate with parents and their experiences with TPC. The research questions focused on the definition of effective TPC, experiences from teacher preparation programs (TPPs) with TPC, experiences from in-service years and TPC, recommendations for preparing secondary ECEs for …

The Teaching And Learning International Survey 2018. Australian Report Volume 2: Teachers And School Leaders As Valued Professionals, Sue Thomson, Kylie Hillman

OECD Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS)

The OECD Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS) collects internationally comparable data on the learning environment and the working conditions of teachers and principals in schools across the world. TALIS 2018 is the third cycle of TALIS, and Australia has participated in each cycle. In Australia, a nationally representative sample of 4,000 teachers and principals from 200 lower secondary schools was randomly selected to participate in the study. Findings from TALIS 2018 in Australia are reported in two volumes. The first volume, Teachers and School Leaders as Lifelong Learners, published in November 2019, explored teaching practices, the changing contexts for …

Espoused And Enacted Beliefs Of High School English Language Arts Teachers In Writing Instruction, Sydnie Schoepf

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of the current study is to explore the espoused beliefs and enacted practices of secondary English Language Arts teachers with regards to writing instruction and how these beliefs correlate with teacher self-efficacy beliefs. The study worked to build upon the literature mainly in the fields of mathematics and science in order to explore what the perceived and enacted beliefs are and how they affect the self-efficacy belief of teachers within the field of writing instruction in the high school classroom. The study used a collective case study design in order to better understand what espoused and enacted pedagogical …

An Exploration Of High School Principals’ And Assistant Principals’ Perceptions Of Implementing Mental Health Curriculums In Schools, Jacqueline M. Billy

Educational Specialist, 2020-current

Mental health literacy is one’s knowledge of mental health conditions and their accompanying symptoms as well as their understanding of available treatments and mental health services. Virginia Bill SB953, signed into law in 2018, made mental health a mandated topic in health education for all ninth and tenth grade students. There are several Health Education Standards of Learning for Virginia Public Schools which are specifically aimed at increasing students’ mental health literacy. Many of the standards can be met through implementation of evidence-based curriculums focusing on mental health, known as mental health curriculums (MHC). MHC are designed to increase mental …

Experiences Of Middle School Principals With Accountability-Related Stress And Coping Skills, Gus T. Calbert

Dissertations

This exploratory qualitative study was focused on the impact of state and federal mandates on the role of middle school principals, specifically what increased responsibilities and major areas of stress middle school principals are experiencing; how any enhanced stress impacts these middle school principals, both professionally and personally; and what coping mechanisms principals use to handle the stress of any increased responsibilities.

The experiences and perceptions of 12 principals from one Midwestern state were captured through semi-structured interviews, and by having them complete Allison’s Coping Preference Scale. Their answers provide a deeper understanding of what it is like leading a …

Tactviz: A Vmd Plugin For Tactile Visualization Of Protein Structures, Olivia R. Shaw, Jodi A. Hadden-Perilla

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

Scientific disciplines spanning biology, biochemistry, and biophysics involve the study of proteins and their functions. Visualization of protein structures represents a barrier to education and research in these disciplines for students who are blind or visually impaired. Here, we present a software plugin for readily producing variable-height tactile graphics of proteins using the free biomolecular visualization software Visual Molecular Dynamics (VMD) and protein structure data that is publicly available through the Protein Data Bank. Our method also supports interactive tactile visualization of proteins with VMD on electronic refreshable tactile display devices. Employing our method in an academic laboratory has enabled …

Astrodance: Engaging Deaf And Hard-Of-Hearing Students In Astrophysics Via Multimedia Performances, Jason Nordhaus, Manuela Campanelli, Joe Bochner, Thomas Warfield, Hans-Peter Bischof, Jake Noel-Storr

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

The dynamics of gravitating astrophysical systems such as black holes and neutron stars are fascinatingly complex, offer some of nature's most spectacular phenomena, and capture the public's imagination in ways that few subjects can. Here, we describe AstroDance, a multi-media project to engage deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) students in astronomy and gravitational physics. AstroDance incorporates multiple means of representation of scientific concepts and was performed primarily for secondary and post-secondary audiences at ~20 venues in the northeastern US prior to the historic first detection of gravitational waves. As part of the AstroDance project, we surveyed ~1000 audience members roughly split …

Visualization Without Vision – How Blind And Visually Impaired Students And Researchers Engage With Molecular Structures, Croix J. Laconsay, Henry B. Wedler, Dean J. Tantillo

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

This article examines the tools and techniques currently available that enable blind and visually impaired (BVI) individuals to visualize three-dimensional objects used in learning chemistry concepts. How BVI individuals engage with and visualize molecular structure is discussed and recent tactile (or haptic) and auditory methods for visualization of various chemistry concepts are summarized. Remaining challenges for chemistry education researchers are described with the aim of highlighting the potential value of educational research in further enabling BVI students to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields.

Progress Monitoring Through The Lens Of Distance Learning, Jeremy Beulah

Dissertations, Theses, and Projects

Abstract

In this project, the topic discussed is progress monitoring in the lens of distance learning, specifically for those students qualifying for special education services under the umbrella of Emotional Behavioral Disorders (EBD). Additionally, this project focuses on students who qualify for Emotional Behavioral Disorders (EBD), the characteristics of EBD and the procedures and assessments that have students’ qualify for special education services under EBD. The reason why progress monitoring is important for distance learning and what that will look like for students who qualify for EBD will be addressed. Peer-reviewed articles that addressed distance learning and how it might …

Within, Without, And Amidst: A Review Of Literacy Educators’ Perceptions Of Participatory Media Technologies, William T. Wright

Journal of Media Literacy Education

With strict no-cell phone policies in classrooms becoming commonplace, national and international electioneering campaigns eroding trust in social media platforms, and content posted years prior affecting students’ acceptance into the colleges of their choice, it is little wonder that educators often think twice about bringing participatory technologies into their instruction. This literature review seeks to address how literacy educators reckon with the risks and potentials of these participatory technologies in the midst of our current sociopolitical climate, through an examination of an array of factors and influences that shape and give rise to educators’ understandings of participatory technologies’ place in …