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Reading With Understanding: A Global Expectation, Mary Shea, Maria Anne Ceprano

Journal of Inquiry and Action in Education

Abstract:

This article outlines the complexity of reading with understanding, what is required for full and deep comprehension, the state of affairs with regard to reading comprehension in developed countries, possible etiologies for low performances, and suggestions for instruction in specific skills and strategies to improve students’ demonstrated achievement in daily lessons as well as on global assessments. Recognizing the commonality of this concern among nations, a need to examine universally accepted tenets for successful reading comprehension as well as local etiologies that impede it becomes increasingly important. Such tenets are skills and strategies that address all of Irwin’s micro …

Principal’S Coalition Building And Personal Traits Brings Success To A Struggling School In Malaysia, Mohammad Noman, Rosna Awang Hashim, Sarimah Shaik-Abdullah

The Qualitative Report

This paper presents findings from a single site case study of a school in a rural part of Malaysia. Based on data collected through semi-structured interviews of the principal, teachers, students and parents, and observations, document scanning and field notes, the study attempts to identify the context under which the school operates, the core practices of the school principal and the enactment of these core practices. The data analysis was carried out through data reduction resulting in initial themes which were further refined several times until consensus was achieved. The themes were then discussed under the light of theories resulting …

Re-Thinking Apprenticeship In Art Education, Kelly Nicole Denisson

Teacher Education, Educational Leadership & Policy ETDs

Many students face isolation and meaningless experiences in their day-to-day routine in schools. The increasing focus on standardized tests and academic performance reinforces competition and extrinsic rewards for learning. This diminishes opportunities for creative thought, development of communities, and genuine meaningful connection to content, leaving students feeling disconnected to learning and their peers. Art education has long been an outlet in which to collaborate, embrace diversity, and transform throughout the learning process. This study uses the Arita Tradition of Porcelain, its instructional practices, community of practice, and studio classroom environment as a model for apprenticeship in art education. Participant experiences …

Dialogic Interactions That Support Learning And Motivation: A Phenomenological Study Of High School Teachers’ Experiences During Reflective Dialogue, Sandra Metzger

CUP Ed.D. Dissertations

When teachers skillfully interact in reflective dialogue, they experience professional learning and motivation. However, teachers’ interactional skills are often not data-informed. The purpose of this hermeneutic phenomenological study is to provide descriptive data on (a) how high school teachers experience the dialogic interaction within reflective dialogue, (b) what evidence of learning is present in the interaction, and (c) how self-directed motivation is supported in the interaction. The conceptual framework for this study consists of learning theories from Dewey and Mezirow and the Self-Determination theory of motivation from Deci and Ryan. Three sessions were conducted with two teams of two teachers …

Iii International Colloquium Proceedings, International Colloquium

Proceedings of the International Colloquium on Languages, Cultures, Identity in School and Society

No abstract provided.

An Inquiry Into The Development Of Future Speech-Language Pathologists: A Mixed Methods Study, Kimberly Plotts

Theses and Dissertations

Upon graduating college, many students seek employment within the degree area in which they obtained. Employers are seeking skills in individuals that encompass interpersonal, technical, analytical, personal, and professional abilities. As with many careers, the allied health field requires content specific knowledge and specialized skills, which indicate sufficient work readiness. The allied health field of speech-language pathology is touted as one of the fastest growing professions in this decade and is in demand. To become a speech-language pathologist, one must complete a master's program and supervised clinical practicums. Despite participating in a master's program with quality curricula, having supervision by …

Teaching "In Their Best Interest": Preservice Teachers' Narratives Regarding English Learners, Amanda T. Sugimoto, Kathy Carter, Kathleen J. Stoehr

Curriculum and Instruction Faculty Publications and Presentations

In the United States, teachers are increasingly working with English Learners (ELs) in mainstream classrooms. Several areas of focus have been proposed to guide the preparation of teachers for working with ELs, including: language related knowledge, skills, and dispositions. This narrative study examined how field-based experiences shaped 49 preservice teachers' dispositions toward ELs. An iterative and thematic analysis of collected narratives found that preservice teachers often completed their practicum in classrooms that did not model positive dispositions or pedagogical practices toward ELs. These findings have implications for the tasks and experiences given to preservice teachers during their preparation sequence.

Musicalization: Early Childhood Music Access, Discourse, And Praxis In Nyc Charter Schools, 2014-2015, Andrew Aprile

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Over the past two decades, charter schools have become a hallmark of education reform in the United States. Concurrent with this movement is the increasing prominence of high stakes testing. While much research has sought to compare the effectiveness of charter schools and traditional public schools in terms of standardized assessments, scant attention has been paid to the role of arts and music in charter schools, and little has been done to distinguish the distinct strands of the charter school movement. Given what we know about the importance of music education and the growth of charter schools, it was the …

Learning And Changing: The Shaping Of A Teacher’S Identity Through Time, Across Spaces And In Different Contexts, Nikolaos Bogiannidis, Jane Southcott, Maria Gindidis

The Qualitative Report

This research paper explores the confluence of significant events in my life that shaped my identity as a teacher and researcher. I employed autoethnography to explore my personal life journey across time, space and context, in order to identify and to analyse the significant moments of epiphany that impacted on my decision to become a teacher. The findings of this study reveal a number of universal qualities of good teachers across three continents who, independently and unbeknown to each other, acted as role models in shaping my identity and my desire to become a teacher in order to serve the …

Leveraging The Demands Of Edtpa To Foster Language Instruction For English Learners In Content Classrooms, Laura Baecher, Marcus Artigliere, Teresa Bruno

Journal of Educational Research and Practice

This article provides insight into how a required, clinically based national teacher performance assessment for candidates becoming English-as-a-second-language specialists in many U.S. states, the Education Teacher Performance Assessment (edTPA), engenders a focus on language instruction in the content-based classroom. This assessment’s focus on language within the content areas provides a positive washback opportunity to strengthen teacher candidates' language instruction in teaching English to speakers of other languages (TESOL) preparation programs connected to partner schools in which classrooms often provide sheltered content with minimal language instruction. We share how, in our large Masters of Arts program in TESOL, we have purposefully …

Integrating Art Into The Classroom: A Necessary Component Of A Well-Rounded Education, Kate Latham

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

This thesis includes a combination of research and visual arts integration lesson plans. Research covers the benefits of exposure to the visual. Lesson plans were specifically designed for the core content area subjects: English/language arts, mathematics, science, and social studies. Each of these lessons was designed to meet local and national standards for the core content area and for visual arts. Additionally, each lesson plan includes a component of art production. This thesis can be utilized by a variety of individuals, including educators who strive to incorporate art into their classrooms. The research aspect can be utilized by those struggling …

Effects Of Teaching Level, Subject Area, And Degree On Grades 5-12 Educator Learning Modes, Meredith Young (Jones)

College of Education Dissertations

The purposes of this dissertation were two-fold. First, the purpose of this study was to determine the effects by subject area taught between educators in high schools versus educators in middle schools on the Abstract Conceptualization, Active Experimentation, Concrete Experience, and Reflective Observation learning modes measured by Kolb’s Learning Style Inventory in one central Arkansas school district. The independent variables for Hypotheses 1-4 were educator teaching level (high school versus middle school) and subject area taught (mathematics/science, literacy/social studies, and other). Second, the purpose of this study was to determine the effects by degree level between educators in high schools …

Professional Development As A Process Of Cultural Brokering: Positioning Coaches As Cultural Brokers, Tasha R. Wyatt, E. Brook Chapman De Sousa, Sarah C. Mendenhall

Journal of Educational Research and Practice

Teachers who serve diverse students must navigate two “worlds.” One world is that of standardized curricula and pedagogy and the other is culturally relevant education. To effectively navigate these worlds, teachers need assistance from “cultural brokers” who can help make sense of the tension that emerges when these two educational worlds interact. This study analyzes the work of two Center for Research on Education, Diversity, and Excellence coaches who worked as cultural brokers to help teachers integrate multiple pedagogical models. The results indicate the coaches shifted their strategies depending on teacher preferences, and helped teachers overcome constraints within their classrooms …

Successful With Stem? A Qualitative Case Study Of Pre-Service Teacher Perceptions, Stacie H. Nowikowski

The Qualitative Report

This research is a qualitative case study of pre-service teachers’ experiences with a Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) module during a middle level interdisciplinary course in the teaching of mathematics and science. Data were collected through document analysis of participant reflection journals (during six distinct stem tasks) and college curriculum as well as an analysis of researcher observations of the STEM activities. While the first and last tasks were reflective and designed to identify pre-existing STEM experiences and post-module knowledge, respectively, the other four STEM tasks simulated student-centered STEM activities common to the middle level classroom. The data were …

Language Culture Wars: Effects Of Language Policy On Language Minorities And English Learners, Ambar A. Perez

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

This thesis investigates the intertextuality of language policy, K-12 TESL pedagogies, and EL identity construction in the perpetuation of unjust TESL practices in these contexts. By examining the power structures of English language ideology through critical discourse analysis of recent California language policy, this thesis demonstrates English language teaching’s intrinsically political nature in K-12 education through negotiations and exchanges of power. Currently, sociolinguistic approaches to TESL and second language acquisition acknowledge the value of language socialization teaching methods. This requires the acceptance of cognition, not as an individual pursuit of knowledge containment and memorization, but cognition as a collaborative and …

Teachers’ Self-Efficacy When Differentiating Between Language Acquisition Difficulties Or Possible Learning Disabilities In English Language Learners, Elizabeth Hallett

All Theses And Dissertations

This multiple-case study examines teachers’ self-efficacy, or perceptions of their effectiveness, when differentiating between typical language acquisition difficulties and possible learning disabilities in English Language Learners (ELLs) who are challenged academically. Five mainstream elementary teachers from a mid-sized urban school district in the northeastern United States participated in the study. Data from individual interviews, meeting observations and artifacts were collected from each of the participants. Meeting observations occurred during each participant’s Integrated Learning Team meetings. During interviews, participants described their experiences working with ELLs who struggled more than typical ELLs and presented an artifact representing experiences teaching such students. Across …

Exploring Teacher Candidates’ Civic Efficacy Through Civic Engagement And Critical Literacy In A Literacy Methods Course, Dana M. Karraker

Theses and Dissertations

Public school spaces play a large role in developing people’s understandings of civic knowledge and responsibility. Teachers, administrators, and policy-makers design school curriculum to reflect the types of citizens they believe a society needs, and thus, determines approaches to teaching and curriculum development (Labaree, 1997). This action research study examined the civic efficacy and critical literacy understandings of seven elementary education teacher candidates enrolled in a content area literacy course. The course and the study were designed using a critical literacy and civic efficacy framework as literacy practices are closely connected to the ways in which people are able to …

Rigor And Relevance: A Teacher Research Study On Using Young Adult Literature In Detracked Secondary English Language Arts Courses, Kathleen Colantonio-Yurko, Cody Miller, Jennifer Cheveallier

Journal of Practitioner Research

This article explores how three students who would not have qualified for honors-level curriculum under a tracked model performed in detracked English Language Arts (ELA) courses. Our teacher research study was guided by the following question: How can the incorporation of young adult literature (YAL) in a detracked ELA honors course affect the experiences of students who would not have qualified for honors curriculum under a tracked model? We found that the incorporation of YAL helped students explore diverse ideas and expanded their capacity to think, read, and write critically. This study has implications for broader conversations relating to detracking …

Building Community Using Experiential Education With Elementary Preservice Teachers In A Social Studies Methodology Course, Stephanie L. Speicher

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

There is urgency for teacher educators to instruct preservice teachers in the core tenants of social justice education. This urgency is based upon the ever-growing shift in the American demographic landscape and the responsibility of educators to teach for equity, justice, identity and community within classrooms across the U.S. Preservice teachers report feeling inadequately prepared to educate for social justice when entering the formal classroom setting. Feelings of incompetence in social justice teaching pedagogy expressed among preservice teachers coupled with minimal examination in the literature of the effects of teacher education practices that aid in the readiness to teach for …

Developing A Competency-Based Framework To Guide Elementary School Teachers' Efforts In Helping Bullied Children, Samantha Gregus

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The current study aimed to develop a competency-based framework designed to assist elementary school teachers in their efforts to help bullied children. Drawing from extant research, Gregus and Cavell (2017) created an initial draft of the framework that contained 25 components representing a mix of knowledge, attitudes, and skills. In Study 1, I obtained input on the framework from practicing elementary school teachers (n = 26) and researchers who study school bullying (n = 14). Teacher input was gathered via a series of focus groups and researchers responded using an online survey. Both teachers and researchers viewed the framework positively …

Facing Diversity In Early Childhood Education: Teachers’ Perceptions, Beliefs, And Teaching Practices Of Anti-Bias Education In Korea, Yerim Hong

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

The changing composition of early childhood classrooms challenges teachers to be more responsive to the diverse needs of all children. This study explores the challenges and successes early childhood teachers experience with facing diversity in their classrooms. The purpose of this qualitative interview study was to investigate kindergarten teachers’ perceptions, beliefs, and teaching practices concerning anti-bias education in Seoul, South Korea. There were two groups of in-service kindergarten teachers, four teachers in each group, who participated in one-on-one interviews with structured and open-ended questions. The teachers in one group had more experience with teaching in diverse classroom settings than the …

Examining How Video-Elicited Reflection Mediates Teacher Candidates’ Beliefs About English Language Learners: A Multiple Case Study, Monica M. Gonzalez

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

English Language Learners (ELLs) are students who speak a language other than English; they are the fastest growing student population in United States’ (US) public schools and will include over 17 million students by the year 2020 (NCES,2015). The dramatic increase in the ELL student population means that all mainstream classroom teachers will teach at least one ELL within their first year of graduating from a teacher preparation program. However, most US teachers hold misconceptions about ELLs and feel unprepared for ELL instruction (Coady, Harper, & de Jong, 2011). More empirical research is needed to inform teacher preparation programs on …

Multilingual Literacies: Invisible Representation Of Literacy In A Rural Classroom, Lydiah Kananu Kiramba

Department of Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education: Faculty Publications

In many countries, educational policies typically mandate school activities that promote a homogeneous and narrow range of academic literacies for all learners despite the diverse nature of human learning. This ethnographic case study examines how a 12-year-old Kenyan fourth-grade student performing below average on all standardized tests used multiple invisible literacies while documenting his knowledge and life experiences in a rural context. Invisible literacies are covert meaning- making literacy practices that are not privileged in the classroom. Examination of these practices shows a convergence between school and home literacies, suggesting a need for education stakeholders to identify literacies that are …

Critical Media Literacies In The Twenty-First Century: Writing Autoethnographies, Making Connections, And Creating Virtual Identities, Ah-Young Song

Journal of Media Literacy Education

Critical media literacies can help nurture students’ creative agencies and engender positive, sustained change in local communities. Kellner and Share (2005) have noted that students do need to develop faculties with digital technologies but that they must also participate in critical readings of cultural artifacts and discriminate between various multimedia sources. It is important for youth to conceptualize language as perpetuating different kinds of ideologies, for viewpoints are “connected to negotiable, changeable, and sometimes contested stories, histories, knowledge, beliefs, and values encapsulated into cultural models (theories) about the world” (Gee, 2008, p. 29). Semiotic meanings are in constant flux due …

A Pedagogy Of Care For Adolescent English Learners: A Formative Experiment, Mary Amanda Stewart, Alexandra Babino, Katie Walker

TAPESTRY

In the case of educators of adolescents in the dynamic process of English acquisition, it is our goal to increase the fulfillment and success of the students we are privileged to serve through nurturing their academic, emotional, personal, social, and civic development. It is, therefore, essential that educators understand the implementation and impact of teaching through a framework of care.

Meeting Yourself Without Rose Colored Glasses: An Urban Public School, Shenelle Dubose, Apryll Mendez

Dissertations

The impact of a culturally relevant professional development series on classroom teacher’s cultural lens was determined. Fifty teachers from two different school districts participated in 16 hours of professional development in an attempt to impact their understanding of how culture and instruction are connected.

During the professional development, participants took part in activities, dialogues and reflections designed to impact their cultural competency. The content of the four professional development sessions included (a) videos on culturally relevant teaching; (b) discussion of cultural identity of participants and how it surfaces in the classroom; (c) discussion of the culture, values, and beliefs of …

Latino Mothers’ Responsiveness And Bilingual Language Development In Young Children From 24 Months To 36 Months, Rica Ramirez

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This longitudinal study examined the role maternal responsiveness had on shaping Spanish and English language development in bilingual two year-old children. Because children who are bilingual language learners are oftentimes coming from low socioeconomic families it is essential that we investigate the ways in which they develop language in order to better serve this population. Maternal responsiveness is one source in which we can examine early language development of young bilingual children. Eight Latino mother-child dyads were observed and assessed at three time points. Each observation was coded for maternal responsive behaviors. Regression and multilevel modeling was used in order …

Pre-Service Teachers’ Perceptions About The Effectiveness Of The Toon Comic Books In Their Guided Reading Instruction, Ewa Mcgrail, Alicja Rieger, Gina M. Doepker

Georgia Educational Researcher

Recently, education and literacy researchers have acknowledged educational merit in guided reading that incorporates interactive and authentic reading texts, such as graphic novels, which meet the needs of today’s predominantly multimodal learners (Jennings, Rule, & Zanden, 2014; Kist & Pytash, 2015). This qualitative study explores through interviews and a questionnaire the perceptions of pre-service teachers about the effectiveness of the comic book series known as TOON comics in guided reading with struggling readers and writers, from kindergarten through fifth grade. Pre-service teachers have expressed positive views concerning the use of these comic books in guided reading instruction with their struggling …

Multimodal Literacy: Journey Through The Collaborative Transmediation Of Wordless Picturebooks, Catherine Todd Thomson

Teaching & Learning Theses & Dissertations

With a shift towards 21st century literacy practices and a greater variety of literature, the mere definitions of literacy and text are shifting. The focus on traditional text that heavily relies on words and supporting pictures to convey meaning has changed to text of multiple modes. Teachers are now charged with fostering new skills in students in order to help them engage with these texts effectively and to allow them to make meaning of the multimodal texts that surround them (Siegel, 2006).

In this qualitative case study, the primary investigator assumed a dual role as the classroom teacher and researcher …

Perceptual Learning Styles Modalities Utilizing The Multimodal Paired Associates Learning Test: An Analysis Of Latinos Born In Central And South America, Matias Ramirez

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Businesses and Human Resources professionals face the ongoing challenge of continuously upskilling and developing employees. Changes to processes or procedures, changes in technology, changes in job functions, and updates or changes to compliance laws or regulations are all reasons that employees must attend and complete employer-developed training. This study utilized the updated Multimodal Paired Associates Learning Test, version four (MMPALT-IV) instrument to determine perceptual learning styles and to determine if there exists a measureable difference in Latinos perceptual learning styles.

The purpose of this study was to measure the perceptual learning styles of Latino adults from Central and South America …