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Developing Alphabetic Knowledge In A School-To-Home Project With Students Who Are At-Risk: Literature Review, Julie Ann Armstrong

Early and Special Education Graduate Projects and Theses

Literacy skills are developing in children from the time they are born and should be nurtured during the preschool years (Joint Position Statement, 2005). There are important literacy skill sets for children to acquire to be competent readers. The 2009 National Early Literacy Panel has defined one of these skills as alphabetic knowledge (Bell & Westberg, 2009). Alphabetic knowledge is being able to recognize and name letters and their sounds. The research shows that mastery of alphabetic skills is required before children can engage successfully in phonemic awareness. (Bara, Gentaz & Cole, 2007). Parents can facilitate their child’s mastery of …

Motivation For Vocabulary Learning Of College Students, Qizhen Deng

Department of Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education: Theses and Other Student Research

The purpose of this study is to construct and validate an instrument to measure motivation for vocabulary learning, opening the door to more studies on motivation for vocabulary learning in reading and listening. In the new 34-item questionnaire: Motivation for Vocabulary Learning Questionnaire (MVLQ), eleven subscales were examined within two motivational constructs, namely, self-efficacy and attitude. Participants in this study were 121traditional undergraduate students from a Midwestern research university. Students responded to two self-report questionnaires: the Motivation for Vocabulary Learning Questionnaire (MVLQ), and the Motivation for Reading Questionnaire (MRQ) (Wigfield & Guthrie,1997). The results suggested that MVLQ had good reliability …

Evaluating And Improving The Quality Of Teacher’S Language Modeling In Early Childhood Classrooms, Lillian White Englund

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The relationship between pre-school teachers and the children in their classrooms directly influences the degree of success the children experience in school and in life. The emphasis on quality pre-K education in the U.S. has resulted in an increased need for highly qualified teachers who are capable of engaging in meaningful interactions with young children. An important component of high-level teacher-child interactions is the teacher's ability to model language for children as they acquire vocabulary and language context.

This mixed-methods study was designed to examine the effectiveness of a professional development intervention designed to improve the quality of language modeling …

Environmental And Developmental Indicators In Early Childhood: Relations To Second-Grade Reading Comprehension, Gina A. Cook

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Reading success has been linked to high school completion, future job success, and future generations of children who can read. Unfortunately, children who are unable to read on grade level by the end of first grade are at a great disadvantage and unlikely to catch up later. Without the ability to read and comprehend text, all aspects of schooling become progressively more difficult and the challenge of poor reading ability can be so difficult to overcome that many poor readers will not complete high school. For these reasons, it is important to identify early experiences in a child's family environment …

Motivation For Vocabulary Learning Of College Students, Qizhen Deng

Department of Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education: Theses and Other Student Research

The purpose of this study is to construct and validate an instrument to measure motivation for vocabulary learning, opening the door to more studies on motivation for vocabulary learning in reading and listening. In the new 34-item questionnaire: Motivation for Vocabulary Learning Questionnaire (MVLQ), eleven subscales were examined within two motivational constructs, namely, self-efficacy and attitude. Participants in this study were 121 traditional undergraduate students from a Midwestern research university. Students responded to two self-report questionnaires: the Motivation for Vocabulary Learning Questionnaire (MVLQ), and the Motivation for Reading Questionnaire (MRQ) (Wigfield & Guthrie,1997). The results suggested that MVLQ had good …

Problematic Conceptualizations: Allies In Teacher Education For Social Justice, Vonzell Agosto

Educational Leadership and Policy Studies Faculty Publications

This review of the literature on the concept ally and ally identity development was inspired by a qualitative study exploring the identities and social justice values of prospective teachers of color. Although the participants in the original study never used the term ally, their narratives inspired me to characterize them as allies in the struggle for social justice education. However, a review of the literature on allies, as analyzed through critical race theory and critical discourse analysis, revealed emerging conceptualizations of ally as incongruent with minority identities as they position people of color at the periphery of this social justice …

Learning Reconsidered: Supporting The Preparatory Year Student Experience, Rania M Rafik Khalil

English Language and Literature

Preparatory Year students are challenged by many aspects of their academic life as they make the transition from school to university. As a result, there has been growing emphasis on accountability for the quality of student life, teaching and learning. It has been observed that when faculty supported students’ efforts to meet high expectations, students rose to the challenge. The role of faculty staff is not simply to disseminate information but rather to create conditions that assist students to construct their own knowledge. Excellence in teaching and learning can only occur when both faculty and students are both actively engaged.

Análisis De “Proyecto Mirlo”: Aprendiendo A Acoger Al “Desconocido”, Abigail Bissette

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

During the fall and early winter of this year, I volunteered with a program called, “Proyecto Mirlo,” which is a small part of a larger organization, “Caritas,” whose focus is providing support to marginalized groups of people in Spanish society. Proyecto Mirlo is a subsection that provides free language classes for immigrants, as well as food and, in extreme cases, financial help. In my volunteer work, I taught basic Spanish classes to an eighteen-year-old immigrant from Senegal. As my student grew in his language proficiency, I grew in my teaching proficiency, especially on the discovery of teaching resources that I …

The Effect Of Props On Story Retells In The Classroom, Marie A. Stadler, Gay Cuming Ward

Reading Horizons: A Journal of Literacy and Language Arts

The purpose of this investigation was to determine the effect of props on children’s narrative retells. Forty-two children in two comparable K/1 classrooms heard and practiced the same stories over eight weeks. This study found that the props had a positive effect on the children’s use of descriptive language, but there was no effect on the number of story grammar elements or cohesive devices used, nor for the length and complexity of the stories. Results support a balanced literacy program where children practice retelling stories with and without props.

Teacher’S Scaffolding Moves In Communication Strategies In Secondary School Efl Classes, Wahyu Usadiati

Bahasa dan Seni: Jurnal Bahasa, Sastra, Seni, dan Pengajarannya

Teachers have their own strategies in communicating their messages in EFL classes. The strategies may be in the form of verbal and nonverbal signals to get the message through to the students. The results of the study show that scaffolding moves were mostly used by the teacher, consisting of organizing and maintaining student’s interest and motivation, modeling, code switching, explaining or elaborating, eliciting student’s response, checking student’s comprehension, and providing wait time. Non-verbal signals always occur for the accompaniment of the verbalization of the teacher’s messages.

Comparing The Pedagogical Thinking Of More Successful And Less Successful Adult Esl Instructors Using Stimulated Recall, Jason Paul Roberts

Theses and Dissertations

This paper reports a study that examined the pedagogical knowledge (knowledge and beliefs related to the act of teaching) of two more successful and two less successful adult ESL instructors during planning teaching and post teaching reflection. The verbal reports of their teaching were compared to previous studies (Gatbonton, 2000, 2008; Mullock, 2006) that used stimulated recall to categorize adult ESL instructors' pedagogical thoughts during their instruction. The comparison showed that the previous categories were inadequate to cover the data. Additional codes were added in order to codify all the data after which patterns and themes emerged that overarched the …

Applying Critical And Creative Thinking In Teaching Buddhism, Doan Van Thua

Critical and Creative Thinking Capstones Collection

This synthesis describes my journey preparing myself for teaching Buddhism in a way that moves beyond traditional approaches of transmitting information to students. I describe learning, teaching activities, tools, and methodologies using critical and creative thinking that can be applicable to Buddhist education. I describe some changes towards more interactive modes of teaching and progress in teaching I have made so far in my teaching Sunday school for children, in public teaching, and in giving instruction to Buddhist groups. Some further expectations and some defects in my teaching that need improvement are noted. A Buddhist is not a blind follower, …

Pre-Service Teacher Training Experiences Viewed As A Cultural Activity, Ronald Knorr

All Dissertations

What are the experiences of career-changing pre-service middle school teachers undergoing a group-based activity as part of their training? This series of studies explored two aspects of answering this question. In the first manuscript, a methodology of a novel virtual phenomenology interview technique attempts to determine the influence of a virtual world interviewer compared to a traditional face-to-face setting. While syntactical and other significant differences were found, there was no significant difference found comparing meaning units derived from both settings. In the second manuscript, these meaning units were analyzed to create an essence of the experience for the study's participants, …

No Child Left Behind: School Processes Associated With Positive Changes, Collaborative Partnership, And Principal Leadership, Thienhuong Hoang

Academic Leadership: The Online Journal (2003-2012)

Parent involvement is one of the key components of the NCLB Act. Under NCLB, every school district is mandated to develop processes to ensure meaningful ways to engage parents. The requirements for parental involvement rest on the premise that parents acting as informed advocates to hold schools and school district accountable. The value placed on family involvement at the federal, district, and local school levels reflects decades of research showing the connection between family involvement and positive student outcomes. Studies on family involvement have concluded that students’ home environment and family involvement are important predictors of a variety of academic …

Teachers Identify And Support At-Risk Gifted Students, Theresa Monaco, Danna Eichenold, Victoria Kasper, Claudi Gonzales

Academic Leadership: The Online Journal (2003-2012)

Six experienced teachers in the regular classroom, who happen to have one, or more students that was identified by the school as having gifted characteristics or students that teachers felt should have been identified as a gifted student, develop their way of helping students overcome personal challenges. It is our hope that a research documented approach will catch the eye of other teachers and motivate them to do the same. Each teacher documented research as it relates to his/her student(s). In the absence of a school identification process, other researched identification processes served as benchmark for teacher support. Following are …

Language And Care: Tensions For Japanese Teachers And Foreign Students In Japanese Schools, Mito Takeuchi, Francis Godwyll

Academic Leadership: The Online Journal (2003-2012)

Current Japanese schools have maintained the homogeneous discourse, based on the majority, ethnic Japanese, embedded in the national curriculum. In addition to the homogeneous discourse, Tsuneyoshi (2003) argues that Japanese schools have an educational philosophy of egalitarianism, asserting that “all children are treated the same.” Egalitarianism in schools refers to working to provide the same materials for all students, teaching all at the same pace, and, frequently not offering additional support for particular students (Gordon, 2006). In other words, students need to share a high level of commonalities, such as a common language, a shared belief system and behavioral norms, …

The State, Bureaucracy And Corruption In Nigeria, Dare Arowolo

Academic Leadership: The Online Journal (2003-2012)

The transformation of societies to capitalism has introduced complexity into activities of man. Once capitalism transformed the traditional way of life, factors such as effectiveness of competition, freedom of movement and the absence of any system of social security compelled the state to assume responsibility for the protection and welfare of the individual (Jacoby, 1973:147). To help the state achieve this, it has become imperative to have a seeming standing power evolving from, but placing itself above, the society. Such power that alienates itself more and more from the society is being exercised on behalf of the state by certain …

The Ethics Of Educational Leadership, Denver J. Fowler

Academic Leadership: The Online Journal (2003-2012)

“No issue has captured the interest and imagination of the American public more than the subject of ethics, particularly in relation to leadership in the public sector” (Rebore, 2000, p.v). One of the most universal questions in educational leadership is “What is the relationship of ethics as it relates to educational leadership?” The answer can be very complex. Many authors who have written on the subject of ethics in educational leadership have tried to answer this question. All major branches of ethics must be considered when attempting to answer this question. These branches include metaethics, normative ethics, applied ethics, moral …

The Reluctance Of Korean Education In The Face Of Change, Paul Jambor

Academic Leadership: The Online Journal (2003-2012)

It should first be stated that there are many bright students in the Korean educational system and Korea has produced great waves in the information technology fields and the Korean economy has leaped in bounds from the days of poverty and despair, following the Korean War, to the present days when Korea has proven itself to be a world class country with a world class economy. Nevertheless, the Korean system of education has seemingly lagged behind the advances the Korean information technology and semiconductor industries have enjoyed.

The Tesol Arabia Conference And Its Role In The Professional Development Of Teachers At Institutions Of Higher Education In The United Arab Emirates., Jonathan Aubrey, Christine Coombe

Academic Leadership: The Online Journal (2003-2012)

There are many reasons to pursue professional development, but perhaps one of the most important may be to narrow the wide chasm left behind by many teacher education programs. Freeman (1989) and Holliday (1994) have pointed out many of the difficulties associated with the transfer of knowledge into classroom practices, while others have directed attention to the vast kaleidoscope of cultural diversity involved in ELT (see Larsen-Freeman, 1983; Colabucci, 2007; Govardhan, Nayar and Sheorey, 1999). Consider, for a moment, what happens to a cohort of MA TESOL students upon completion of their teacher education programs. They scatter off to various …

Technology In The Classroom An Educator’S Guide To Technology & Learning, Joseph Lawrence Bishop

All Graduate Projects

The need for an educational technology manual was researched. Based on research a resource handbook for understanding and using technology in the classroom was in demand. In order to meet the demand for a technology training guide for teachers, a detailed handbook was created. The handbook includes information on the following aspects of educational technology; desktop computers, laptop computers, miniature computing, visual technologies, educational software, accessibility software, the Internet, video technology, and WebQuests. The handbook is intended to be used as a technology resource for teachers K-12 in any State/Country.

Narrating The Literate Identities Of Five Ninth Grade Boys On The School Landscape, Mary Frances Rice

Theses and Dissertations

I conducted a narrative inquiry with five ninth grade boys in my English class that I identified as displaying multiple literacies. The classes I taught the boys in were two sections of honors ninth grade English. The boys came from a variety of backgrounds and lived in various neighborhoods in the approximately 20,0000-member community where we all live. The site of this research was the junior high school in Utah where the boys attend school and I had been employed for six years. After the research was collected, I conducted several negotiation sessions with the boys and their parents at …

The Process Of Successfully Integrating Communication Technologies Into Short-Term, Faculty-Led Study Abroad Programs: Reflections From The Field, Todd L. Goen, Jennifer R. Billinson, Linda D. Manning

Journal of Global Initiatives: Policy, Pedagogy, Perspective

As advances in communication technologies (CT) continue to shape modern life, it is critical study abroad professionals and faculty leaders contemplate the ways in which such technologies impact study abroad. This essay provides an argument for the value and utility of such contemplation through an in-depth examination of a short-term, faculty-led study abroad program and the three faculty who lead it. The authors provide reflective summaries of their own experiences with CT and study abroad and discuss the ways in which changes in CT resulted in changes to their own study abroad program including the integration of CT into academic …

Professional Development Of Efl Teachers In Mexico: Examining Cross-Cultural And Global Linkages, Influences, And Outcomes, Robert A. Devillar, Binbin Jiang

Journal of Global Initiatives: Policy, Pedagogy, Perspective

During the past twenty years, the paradigm of professional development in U.S. education has shifted from an analyitco-incremental model to an integrative-systematic model. The integrative-systematic model focuses on the whole-scale improvement of general student performance through the articulation, implementation, and assessment of standards that apply to teachers and teacher preparation institutions as well as to students. This article addresses the basis for this paradigm shift in the U.S. and the global expansion of the professional development mandate. The authors describe the first phase of a three-year, cross-cultural professional development program involving English-as-a-Foreign Language (EFL) teachers at a private school in …

Environmental Science, Its Importance And Integration, Sultan Alam

Professional Development Centre, Gilgit

No abstract provided.

Bibliography Of Research On The College Fraternity, 1996-June 2010, Charles G. Eberly

Faculty Research & Creative Activity

This is a document I edited with the help of master's level graduate students in college student affairs and counseling at Eastern Illinis University. The bibliography of research on the college fraternity / sorority contains 497 articles published from 1996 to June 1, 2010. Library search terms are included with each entry.

Differentiated Reading In Primary Grades, Cara Cathleen Axe

All Graduate Projects

The purpose of this project is to help teachers integrate reading differentiation into the classroom and thus help students with their varied needs in learning to read. Differentiation of instruction is valuable in all areas, particularly in teaching reading. This project emphasizes that it is essential that teachers make reading skills and content accessible to all students. My purpose is to show the importance of differentiated reading instruction and to provide information and resources for teachers and parents.

A Differentiated Unit Of Instruction For A Secondary Social Studies Classroom, David Christopher Tempel

All Graduate Projects

The purpose of this project is to create a differentiated unit of instruction for eleventh grade United States History students as a pilot for the creation of a differentiated curriculum in U.S. History. This unit will examine the relationship between instructional strategies utilized and the impact upon student achievement. This unit will systematically plan instruction that meets the needs of an academically diverse group of students by honoring each student's learning needs and maximizing each student's learning capacity.

Lost In Translation? How The Culture(S) Of The Technological University Dublin (Dit) Could Be Analysed Via A Lens Of Critical Discourse Analysis (Cda) Of Its Strategic Plan, And Other Documents, During Its Transition To Grangegorman, Ann Conway

Other resources

This paper discusses some of the theoretical foundations to critical discourse analysis (CDA) and will review the principles of CDA. It will attempt to answer how CDA can be understood and what conceptual tools it offers as a lens to view DIT’s changing culture and role in education and society during its transition to Grangegorman. This move from multiple sites to a ‘one size fits all’ campus is believed to be about better servicing the needs of society by ‘supporting the economic, social and cultural life of its people in one main campus’ (DEGW, 2009). CDA focuses on the links …

Spanish Science Resources For A Kindergarten Dual Language Classroom, Carmen Lorena Yanez

All Graduate Projects

The high population of English Language Learners (ELL) in the United States has impacted the educational system. Accountability for meeting high stakes tests and state standards has been a constant pressure for many schools that have a high concentration of ELL. School districts have adopted different programs to meet the needs of ELL. These programs focus on making academic content more relevant and comprehensible so students can meet state standards. One of the programs that has proven to be successful in meeting ELL needs is dual language. However, a challenge for many dual language programs that target English and Spanish …