Digital Commons Network^™

The Effects Of Different Methods Of Cloze Test Construction And Their Relationship With A Standardised Reading Comprehension Test, Trevor Michael Edward Forde

Theses : Honours

The purpose of this study is to provide guidelines to classroom teachers for the construction of valid and reliable cloze comprehension tests. Review of the related literature suggested there are many diverse and contradictary opinions as to the most appropriate method of constructing cloze tests. The subjects were 49 Year 5 primary school children from two metropolitan schools. Three different comprehension tests were administered. The Gap Reading Comprehension Test and two Cloze Comprehension Tests consisting of 50 and 100 word deletions, in which the deletions began at either the fifth or sixth word of the second sentence. The Cloze Tests …

Factors Influencing Persistence Of Adult Students In High School Completion Programs, Joan E. Garbarino

Dissertations

This research was conducted to contrast adult persisters' and dropouts' perceptions of the importance of institutional, situational, and dispositional barriers to high school completion.

Institutional factors included staff support, curriculum , student services, and logistical considerations. Situational factors were family and friend support, time, employment, and health. Dispositional factors included attitudes toward education, academic preparedness plus expectations, and satisfaction.

Completers who graduated and noncompleters who dropped out before graduation were surveyed. Statistical analysis allowed the researcher to test differences between the perceptions of persisters and dropouts in regard to eleven factors found in the three major barriers. It also revealed …

A Study Of Cooperative Learning At The High School Level, Lisabeth S. Margulus

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to answer the following research questions:

1. Which teacher skills are necessary to implement effective teamwork in a classroom?

2. What kind of learning environment is optimal for implementing effective teamwork in a classroom?

3. In classrooms using teamwork, does greater student achievement occur than in classrooms not using teamwork?

The study outlined the specific teacher skills and described the optimal learning environment for implementing cooperative strategies in high school classrooms. To address the third question , an experimental study was conducted in which sixty-four 10th-,11th-, and 12th-grade Business Applications and Technology students in …

An Integrated Program For Teaching Writing And Thinking Skills, Edmund James Ady

All Graduate Projects

The nature and development of thought, the connection between thinking and writing, teaching practices associated with the direct teaching of thinking and writing skills were researched and studied. An integrated program of writing and thinking skills was compiled. This program includes techniques for teaching thinking and writing activities and provides step by step procedures to accomplish the integration of thinking skills with writing skills targeted at producing contrast and comparison essays. A discussion and recommendations regarding the program are included.

Enhancing Oral Language Experiences In The Pre-Kindergarten Setting, Anna Kearny

All Graduate Projects

The purpose of this study was to investigate how an oral language emphasis benefits pre-kindergarten children in preparation for entry into kindergarten. This study investigated the concept of enhancing oral language activities in the classroom. Growth in the cognitive, social, and emotional areas in pre-kindergarten children was noted.

Experience-Based Dialogues In Secondary English-As-A-Second-Language Classrooms, Carlina V. Lobos

All Graduate Projects

An informal study was conducted to explore the effectiveness of experience-based dialogues in the promotion of oral language use in secondary-level English-As-A-Second-Language classrooms. The twenty-one dialogues field-tested in the project were developed interactively, by teacher and students, in the sociocognitive context of each of the learner's background knowledge, experience and immediate communication needs. Experience-based dialogues are a method of language teaching and learning that focuses on the communicative act rather than on isolated or discrete grammatical items. An overview of the results of the informal study was presented here. Strategies for teachers to develop and implement, using this approach, were …

The Benefits Of Reading Aloud To Children, Lori Ann Prince

All Graduate Projects

The benefits of reading aloud to children are studied. Observations indicate that the more young children are read to, the more they are motivated to become readers themselves. When young children are participating in the dialogue of a story that is being read aloud, their interest in that story increases dramatically. Using a variety of children's literature is an excellent supplement to the first grade curriculum and language activity lessons. Recommendations from the conclusions are presented.

Schema Theory And Application For The Content Teacher, June Allen Carpenter Darling

All Graduate Projects

Schema theory, research, and implications for the classroom were studied. Based on research, teacher resources, and curriculum demands, instruction was designed for a secondary teacher of United States History. During a workshop, four secondary teachers from three districts reacted to research and instruction. A video tape was developed showing schema theory concepts, related research, application for the content teacher, and reactions from secondary teachers. Implications for the content teacher are discussed.

A Research And An Adaptation Of Methodologies To Develop Supplementary Materials And Activities For The Study Of Foreign Language, Melané Mildré

All Graduate Projects

The use of a typical textbook tor the instruction of the first year study of the Spanish language appears to be tedious as well as inadequate in its presentation of grammar drills, vocabulary selection, and its potential of allowing the student to develop fluency in the language. As a result, the writer researched a variety of methodologies currently being employed in the instruction of foreign language. Intending to improve upon the usage of a textbook as well as to add variety to the classroom procedure, the writer then developed or adapted supplementary materials to correlate to the textbook presently being …

Preventing Reading Failure: A Handbook For Understanding Reading Recovery, Marianne Nash

All Graduate Projects

The purpose of this project was to create a handboook designed for use by primary teachers who are interested in learning more about Reading Recovery. The handbook covers the following issues: 1) a brief description of Reading Recovery, 2) how to get a program started, 3) how to select, plan for, and when to discontinue students from Reading Recovery services, 4) Reading Recovery teaching procedures, 5) where training sites are located, 6) a bibliography of suggested books, and 7) obtaining books through mini-grant applications and book orders.

Monthly Parent Involvement Reading Packet, Beverly J. Severtsen-Meeks

All Graduate Projects

The importance of parent involvement in reading with their child at home was studied. A review of literature was done on this topic. Many researchers strongly supported the importance of parents reading with their child and many suggestion were given. The author put together nine monthly parent involvement reading packets (September-May) and implemented them in a self-contained first grade classroom. The parents spent quality time, each month, completing the packet with their child.

Spelling In The Secondary School: A Review Of The Current Situation, Joan Rodrigues

Theses : Honours

The purpose of this study was to discover the strategies being employed by secondary school teachers to assist students with spelling difficulties. Teachers in the English and social studies departments of three Perth high schools were interviewed and asked to indicate the criteria they used to identify students with spelling problems and the teaching methods they employed to help those students overcome their problems. They were also asked to identify the causes of spelling difficulty. Staff at the local district offices and the Ministry of Education were interviewed to establish what support services were available for teachers who wished to …

Parallel Form Test-Retest Reliability And Predictive Validity Of A Curriculum-Based Measurement Academic Readiness Test, Stanley F. Hanus

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The purpose of this study was to help a local school district in rural Iowa determine the reliability and predictive validity of a Curriculum-Based Measurement Academic Readiness Test (CBM-ART). The subjects were 85 kindergarten students and 77 first grade students enrolled in regular education. The total sample of 162 students was approximately 88% Caucasian, 8% Native American, 2% Hispanic, and 2% Asian. Parallel forms of the test were administered at a 14-day interval, with resulting reliability coefficients ranging from .76 to .94 with a median coefficient of .88. Validity coefficients computed between CBM measures administered in kindergarten and Iowa Tests …

No. 118 1991 November

International Journal for Business Education

SIEC Historical Documents

Developing Language Through A Musical Program And Its Effect On The Reading Achievement Of Spanish Speaking Migrant Children, Dora Dominguez

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of a language development program that uses music as a medium of instruction on the reading achievement of Spanish speaking migrant children. Fifty-one preschool aged subjects from a Title I (Michigan Department of Education, 1987) Summer Migrant Education Program participated in the study.

The subjects were randomly divided into 2 groups. They were provided oral language instruction to help them acquire the language of the basal readers. In other words, the vocabulary and language patterns found in a basal reading program were built into the daily language lessons. In the …

2. Psychodiagnostic Computing: From Interpretive Programs To Expert Systems, Marley W. Watkins, Paul A. Mcdermott

The Computer and the Decision-Making Process

As amply demonstrated by the chapters in this volume, computer applications have pervaded all aspects of psychological practice. Although thought by some to be relatively new (Nolen & Spencer, 1986), semiautomatic scoring of the Strong Vocational Interest Blank was accomplished more than 50 years ago (Campbell, 1968) and systems of computer-based test interpretation have been operational for 25 years (Fowler, 1985).

DEVELOPMENT OF ADMINISTRATION AND INTERPRETATION PROGRAMS

Early automated programs typically focused upon the scoring or interpretation of a single psychological test. Most frequently, that test was the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (Fowler, 1985) but the Rorschach was interpreted as …

Literacy Through Literature, Tammy Joy Cartwright

All Graduate Projects

Research on literature based and skills based reading programs was reviewed. Results showed that traditional basal programs, which are heavily skill oriented, do not meet the reading styles of all students. Integrated instruction which allows for a variety of learning activities can alleviate this problem. Research also indicated that the reading experience must be meaningful and motivating and that literature is an excellent means of providing this component. Integrated units were developed based upon this research evidence. Conclusions and recommendations are discussed.

Cedar River Mini-School, Judy Anne Rene

All Graduate Projects

A mini-school was set up in Cedar River Elementary School in Maple Valley, Washington. The mini-school will keep the same students and teachers together for a three-year period of time. There will be a fourth, fifth, and sixth grade classroom, each with its own teacher. Research suggests that students in small schools perceive a closer, warmer relationship with their teachers, fellow students and other adults and a stronger connection with the school. This project presents a justification for and a description of the mini-school. The only conclusions reached come from the development of the mini-school, not in an evaluation of …

A Comprehensive Community Relations Plan For The Sunnyside School District, Gary Street

All Graduate Projects

An action planning team, composed of fifteen Sunnyside community members and school district personnel, created several comprehensive action plans designed to improve public relations within the district boundaries by increasing the interaction/involvement between the school district, parents, and community. The process for developing the plan was divided into five steps: 1) Strategy Analysis; 2) Information Gathering; 3) Action Plan Writing; 4) Cost Benefit Analysis; and 5) Presentation of the Action Plans.

Teaching Comprehension By Incorporating Story Grammar Into A Drta Lesson Format, Sharon Kay Neal

All Graduate Projects

This project presents a teaching procedure which should improve primarylevel reading comprehension. This procedure combines a framework of story grammar as a guide for implementing the Directed Reading Thinking Activity (DRTA) lesson format. Literature is reviewed which illustrates the effectiveness of story grammar when used to teach comprehension, and describes the effectiveness of DRTA to promote active comprehension. By combining both story grammar and DRTA, a procedure is developed and ten example lessons are produced.

A Study Of Qualitative Miscue Analysis Scoring Systems For Identification Of Instructional Reading Levels, Sylvia Estelle Dean

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this descriptive study was to determine the accuracy and practicality of May's Poor Reader (PR) scoring system for the informal reading inventory (IRI), an individual assessment device designed to determine a student's instructional reading level. The PR is a qualitative scoring system developed by Frank May that examines only two miscues (defaults and meaning-denigrating substitutions) in arriving at an estimate of instructional reading level. The predictor variable, PR, was compared for accuracy and practicality with five other predictor variables consisting of four traditional quantitative scoring systems and an additional qualitative system of May's; PR was also compared …

The Improvement Of The Teaching Of Informational Writing: A Study Of Six Teachers, Lisbeth Berridge

Theses : Honours

The purpose of this study was to focus on the progressive stages through which six teachers moved in their efforts to improve children's writing of informational texts. An action research approach was used to control and monitor the work of the researcher and the six teachers as they sought to improve their classroom practice in the teaching of writing. The essential features of the approach were for the teachers to collaborate with the researcher in: a) discussing their problems and in devising suitable solutions; b) formulating a working hypothesis; c) working out an appropriate plan comprised of the steps of …

The Museum Director's Chair: An Ethnography, Mark Richard Jenness

Dissertations

This study reports the findings of a longitudinal case study of the director of one community museum over an eight-month period utilizing ethnographic research methods. A significant gap exists in research-based museum literature about the administrative functions of museums. To help address this lack of information, this study was conducted to determine the role of the chief administrator of a community museum by describing the daily activities and behaviors of the director while interacting with the people, places, and things of the museum. Unique in American society, museums represent our "collective memory" by preserving, conserving, researching, and interpreting living and …

No. 116 1990 November

International Journal for Business Education

SIEC Historical Documents

The Relationship Of Participation In Head Start And Kindergarten Readiness, Maxine C. Brown

Morehead State Theses and Dissertations

An applied project presented to the faculty of the School of Education at Morehead State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Education Specialist by Maxine C. Brown on August 2, 1990.

The Comparison Of The Effects Of Three Prereading Advance Organizers On The Literal Comprehension Of Fifth-Grade Social Studies Materials, Constance L. Pearson

Faculty Dissertations

The goal of this investigation was to determine if one of three prereading advance organizers: a verbal, a graphic, or a problematic situation organizer affected the comprehension of given fifth-grade social studies reading selections. The study attempted to answer the following research questions. 1. Are the post-reading comprehension test scores following a lesson using anyone of the given prereading approaches significantly different from the lesson introduced by the control organizer? 2. Are the post-reading comprehension test scores following a lesson using anyone of the given prereading approaches significantly differently from the other two? In order to answer these questions, subjects …

Acer Newsletter No. 69 July 1990, Australian Council For Educational Research (Acer)

ACER Newsletter archive 1969-1999

No abstract provided.

Classroom Modifications For Learning Disabled Adolescents: The Effects Of Inservice And Follow-Up Consultation On Four Regular Classroom Teachers, Lynne Chalmers

Theses and Dissertations

This study asked the question: What are the effects of an inservice on classroom modifications for secondary learning disabled students on the teaching practice of four highly able teachers? A secondary question asked was: To what extent are teachers‘ behavior and attitudes affected by follow-up consultation? The participants were four secondary regular classroom teachers representing four curricula areas (English, social studies, health, and biology). All four had been recognized as having the ability to work well with learning disabled students. The procedure used for the study was a form of naturalistic inquiry, specifically participant observation. All four teachers participated in …

Acer Newsletter No. 68 February 1990, Australian Council For Educational Research (Acer)

ACER Newsletter archive 1969-1999

No abstract provided.

4. Assessing The Quality Of Teacher Assessment Tests, William A. Mehrens

Assessment of Teaching: Purposes, Practices, and Implications for the Profession

This chapter discusses some of the types of evidences that are appropriate for assessing the quality of teacher-licensure tests. Licensure tests are used to make dichotomous decisions, so reliability estimates of the consistency of decisions are needed. Because the inference of interest has to do with the minimum competency necessary to prevent harm from coming to the clients, it is argued that content validity is the type of validity evidence most appropriate for licensure tests. However, evidences for criterion-related validity, construct validity and "curricular validity" are also discussed. The issue of whether the cut score on a licensure test should …