Digital Commons Network^™

Integrating Discipline-Based Reading To Improve Intercultural And International Learning, Anna Maldoni, Robert Kennelly, Doug Davies

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching & Learning

With the number of alternative pathways now available for entry into Australian universities, the number of international students is steadily increasing. This article reports on the undergraduate results of a teaching project at the University of Canberra, Australia, and explored whether the introduction of a discipline-based reading program into an existing university preparation course would result in an improvement in international students' learning in the discipline and increase their proficiency in the English language.

Academic Skill Development - Inquiry Seminars Can Make A Difference: Evidence From A Quasi-Experimental Study, Christopher Justice, Wayne Warry, James Rice

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching & Learning

This paper examines whether a single first-year inquiry-based seminar can have a lasting impact on students’ academic skills. Fifty-four Inquiry students and 71 comparable students participated in three performance tests: a research skills exercise; an evaluation of oral presentation ability; and a test of critical reasoning and teamwork skills. In addition, participants completed a questionnaire focusing on learning approaches and experiences. The study demonstrates the feasibility of measuring long-term effects of relatively small educational interventions. Findings indicate that although universities may not be developing the skills they assume, a single first-year inquiry seminar can have far reaching effects on academic …

“All Work And No Play” Reconsidered: The Use Of Games To Promote Motivation And Engagement In Instruction, Stephen Gareau, Ruth Guo

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching & Learning

This study examined the role of games in graduate-level instructional technology courses, where the curriculum includes complex abstract theory and hands-on, practical skills. A qualitative approach was used in the study, relying on classroom observations of student behavior (recorded by digital photographs), informal student verbal comments, formal written feedback, and analysis of student game projects, as sources of data. Participants had the opportunity to serve in one or both roles of ‘educational game player’ and ‘educational game designer’. Issues involved in adapting existing games to classroom use are also discussed. Study findings reveal that games can be very useful in …

Click Or Clique? Using Educational Technology To Address Students’ Anxieties About Peer Evaluation, Ruth Walker, Graham Barwell

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching & Learning

Peer bias is recognised as a primary factor in negative student perceptions of peer assessment strategies. This study trialled the use of classroom response systems, widely known as clickers, in small seminar classes in order to actively engage students in their subject’s assessment process while providing the anonymity that would lessen the impact of peer pressure. Focus group reflection on the students’ impressions of the peer evaluation process, the use of clickers, and their anxieties about potential peer bias were analysed in the light of the results of teacher and class evaluations of each individual student presentation. The findings revealed …

Two Minute Training In Class Significantly Increases The Use Of Professional Formatting In Student To Faculty Email Correspondence, Nancy Aguilar-Roca, Adrienne Williams, R Warrior, Diane O’Dowd

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching & Learning

Many university faculty value email as an important tool for communicating with colleagues, but express frustration with a high incidence of unprofessional email correspondence from students. The goals of this study were to document the frequency of specific formatting mistakes that contribute to faculty’s unfavorable perception of student emails and to determine if training could reduce these errors. We analyzed emails from students to three instructors of different rank and gender co-teaching two sections of a large introductory biology class: one section received two minutes of basic email etiquette training, the second section served as the control. We report a …

Learning From Their Own Learning: How Metacognitive And Meta-Affective Reflections Enhance Learning In Race-Related Courses, Nancy L. Chick, Terri Karis, Cyndi Kernahan

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching & Learning

This interdisciplinary project examined how students think and feel about their learning in race-related diversity courses. Students in four classes (literature, psychology, geography) reflected on cognitive and affective dimensions of their own and their classmates’ learning. The Color Blind Racial Attitudes Scales (CoBRAS) confirmed qualitative analyses of learning patterns in three of the classes that resulted in moving from lack of awareness about racism to increased understanding and in the fourth class that lacked this movement. Findings include what helped students learn, cognitive and affective obstacles to learning, and the benefit of exposing students to multiple perspectives, empathy-enhancing activities, and …

Assessing Student Learning And Perceptions In An Upper-Level General Education Requirement Argumentation Course, Kathryn Olson

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching & Learning

This project addressed the difficulties of teaching argument skills, a staple of liberal education, to a mixture of Communication majors and non-majors taking the course for General Education Requirement (GER) credit. The design uses independent instructor comparison of students’ pre- and post-test performances, students’ comparative self-evaluation of their pre- and post-test performances, as well as students’ reflections on their learning in response to a separate questionnaire and independent instructor assessment of their performance in arguing those reflective claims, to analyze learning processes in an upper-level argumentation course. The results include specific content concepts and course and instructor strategies that both …

(Re)Considering The Scholarship Of Learning: Inviting The Elephant In The Room To Tea, Ashlee Cunsolo Willox, Dale Lackeyram

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching & Learning

This essay argues that the SoT(L) field has mistakenly equated learning solely to teaching and the teaching classroom, and has systematically ignored the other moments and opportunities within higher education institutes where learning and scholarly learning occurs—particularly within academic support and development programming. Therefore, we endeavour to discuss what we see as the elephant in the SoT(L) living room—learning, scholarly learning, and the Scholarship of Learning—and examine the ways in which learning and the Scholarship of Learning can be brought back into the SoT(L) discussion through an examination of academic support and development programming. Through the creation of a new …

Continuing Professional Development In Higher Education: The Role Of The Scholarship Of Teaching And Learning, Lewis Elton

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching & Learning

Excerpt: There have been two recent developments in the area of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education: a recognition of the importance of the continuing development of academics in teaching and learning (CPD in HE) and the possible role in this development of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL). This essay aims to provide appropriate links between the two.

Going Fully Online: Reflections On Creating An Engaging Environment For Online Learning, Susan Wegmann, Joyce Mccauley

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching & Learning

When faced with the major pedagogical shift of moving face-to-face classes online, two professors reflect on the process, the learning, and the ways in which they can retain face-to-face engagement in an asynchronous online environment. They share the results of student surveys and colleague emails, along with their own thoughts about moving classes online.

‘Additional Comments’: The Final Word In Assessment For Humanities Undergraduates, Despina Michael

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching & Learning

A key component to the scholarship of teaching and learning (SOTL) is reflection on teaching methodology and, in particular, assessment practices and how they impact on undergraduate students. The aim of this article is to explore how one particular technique—the written expression of ‘additional comments’ in a generic assessment criteria-based form—can be utilised effectively as a means of clear, constructive feedback and simultaneously as a means of engagement in dialogue with students. Dialogue is, in fact, postulated as one of the most important pedagogical tools underpinning and informing deep learning. Understanding how our words leave an impact on our students …

Introductory Texts, Georgia Association For Mathematics Teacher Educators

Georgia Association of Mathematics Teacher Educators (GAMTE) Annual Conference (2007-2019)

Cover page

GAMTE Information

Table of Contents

Paper 1: Analysis Of Achievement For Understanding Geometry, Linda Nash, Annita Hunt, Denise Huddlestun, Kelli Nipper

Georgia Association of Mathematics Teacher Educators (GAMTE) Annual Conference (2007-2019)

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of a mathematics professional development course. More specifically, in this study we examine whether geometric experiences have an impact on level of performance in mathematics. The van Hiele (Fuys, D., Geddes, D., & Tischler, R., 1988) model of geometric understanding provided a research framework from which to view geometric understanding. This model suggests five levels of understanding that should be taken into consideration when examining levels of geometric thinking: Visual, Descriptive/Analytic, Abstract/Relational, Formal Deduction/Proof, and Rigor.

The sample under study was three cohorts of practicing elementary teachers and mathematics coaches …

Paper 2: Content Knowledge And Pedagogical Content Knowledge Of Algebra Teachers And Changes In Both Types Of Knowledge As A Result Of Professional Development, Joy W. Black

Georgia Association of Mathematics Teacher Educators (GAMTE) Annual Conference (2007-2019)

In seeking to improve the mathematics education of all students, it is important to understand the connection between the content knowledge and pedagogical content knowledge of mathematics and how professionals can influence growth in both of these types of knowledge. We do not have an answer about the interplay of content knowledge and pedagogical content knowledge in successful instructional practices in the mathematics classroom. This study involves assessing the content knowledge and pedagogical content knowledge of secondary teachers of Algebra I. In addition, how are these types of knowledge expressed in instructional practices? Last, how do content knowledge, pedagogical content …

Paper 3: Authentic Discovery Projects In Statistics, Dianna Spence, Robb Sinn

Georgia Association of Mathematics Teacher Educators (GAMTE) Annual Conference (2007-2019)

We report the activities and findings of a 3-year project, ―Authentic, Career-Specific, Discovery Learning Projects in Introductory Statistics,‖ funded by the National Science Foundation. The project scope includes: 1) development of teaching materials for using discovery learning projects to teach statistics; 2) training secondary teachers to use the materials developed; 3) evaluation of student outcomes, in both content knowledge and attitudes toward statistics; and 4) extending and refining teacher training.

With input from an interdisciplinary team of instructors, materials were developed to assist the teacher in facilitating collaborative discovery projects using linear regression techniques and comparison techniques with appropriate t-tests. …

Proceedings Of The Third Annual Meeting Of The Georgia Association Of Mathematics Teacher Educators Front Matter

Proceedings of the Annual Meeting of the Georgia Association of Mathematics Teacher Educators

Contents of 3rd Annual GAMTE Proceedings Front Matter:

• Proceedings Committee
• Officers of GAMTE
• Purposes and Goals of GAMTE
• Table of Contents
• Letter from President

Analysis Of Achievement For Understanding Geometry, Annita W. Hunt

Proceedings of the Annual Meeting of the Georgia Association of Mathematics Teacher Educators

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of a mathematics professional development course. More specifically, in this study we examine whether geometric experiences have an impact on level of performance in mathematics. The van Hiele (Fuys, D., Geddes, D., & Tischler, R., 1988) model of geometric understanding provided a research framework from which to view geometric understanding. This model suggests five levels of understanding that should be taken into consideration when examining levels of geometric thinking: Visual, Descriptive/Analytic, Abstract/Relational, Formal Deduction/Proof, and Rigor. The sample under study was three cohorts of practicing elementary teachers and mathematics coaches …

Content Knowledge And Pedagogical Content Knowledge Of Algebra Teachers And Changes In Both Types Of Knowledge As A Result Of Professional Development, Joy W. Black

Proceedings of the Annual Meeting of the Georgia Association of Mathematics Teacher Educators

In seeking to improve the mathematics education of all students, it is important to understand the connection between the content knowledge and pedagogical content knowledge of mathematics and how professionals can influence growth in both of these types of knowledge. We do not have an answer about the interplay of content knowledge and pedagogical content knowledge in successful instructional practices in the mathematics classroom. This study involves assessing the content knowledge and pedagogical content knowledge of secondary teachers of Algebra I. In addition, how are these types of knowledge expressed in instructional practices? Last, how do content knowledge, pedagogical content …

Authentic Discovery Projects In Statistics, Dianna J. Spence, Robb Sinn

Proceedings of the Annual Meeting of the Georgia Association of Mathematics Teacher Educators

We report the activities and findings of a 3-year project, ―Authentic, Career-Specific, Discovery Learning Projects in Introductory Statistics,‖ funded by the National Science Foundation. The project scope includes: 1) development of teaching materials for using discovery learning projects to teach statistics; 2) training secondary teachers to use the materials developed; 3) evaluation of student outcomes, in both content knowledge and attitudes toward statistics; and 4) extending and refining teacher training. With input from an interdisciplinary team of instructors, materials were developed to assist the teacher in facilitating collaborative discovery projects using linear regression techniques and comparison techniques with appropriate t-tests. …

2008-2009 Georgia Southern University Women's Basketball Media Guide, Georgia Southern University

Women's Basketball Records

• Georgia Southern 2008-09 Lady Eagles Basketball Media Guide

Responding To Disruptive Or Threatening Student Behavior: A Guide For Faculty (Draft), Georgia Southern University

Faculty Senate: Index

No abstract provided.

Faculty Senate Minutes-2009

Faculty Senate Minutes

No abstract provided.

Graduate Studies Fact Book

Graduate Studies Fact Books (2006-2017)

No abstract provided.

Demographic, Behavioral And Perceptual Comparisons Of The U.S. Visitor Experience With Group Package Tours And Free Independent Travel To China, Mark A. Bonn, Howook Chang, Jerome Agrusta, H. Leslie Furr, Woo Gon Kim

Management: Faculty Publications

U.S. visitor demand for the China travel experience is anticipated to rise significantly through 2105, causing the Chinese government to employ 100 million service providers over the next six years and raising concern about service delivery and perceptions of the on-site China experience. In an effort to better understand these issues concerning U.S. visitors, this study investigated two specific types of U.S. travelers to China: Group Package Tour (GPT) visitors and Free Independent Travel (FIT) visitors. Results indicated that GPT visitors were more likely to be older and have higher household income than FIT visitors. Four trip-related characteristics of GPT …

Nyar Savannah Program 2009, National Youth-At-Risk Conference, Savannah

National Youth Advocacy & Resilience Conference

N/A

A Study Of Georgia Elementary Teachers' Beliefs And Practices Concerning Grade Level Retention, Anna Jean Hill

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to identify Georgia elementary teachers' beliefs and practices of student grade-level retention. Overall, elementary teachers consider grade level retention to be an acceptable school practice to improve a student's academic success and that grade level retention also provides for long-term academic success. Georgia elementary teachers with master's degrees and above, teachers in suburban communities, teachers with more experience, and fourth grade teachers believe more strongly than elementary teachers with bachelor's degrees, teachers in rural and urban areas, and third and fifth grade elementary teachers, that students who do not meet academic standards should be …

The Perspective Of School Personnel In A Georgia School District Concerning The Recruitment Of Minority Teachers, Shyla D. Ridley

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Recruiting and attracting minorities into the teaching profession is difficult. Given the competitiveness of the current job market and the heavy emphasis on standardized testing for all teacher candidates, the difficulties of attracting quality minority teachers are becoming more challenging. The lack of a racially and culturally diverse teaching staff remains a major issue in education nationally and locally, especially since projections indicate that the representation of minority teachers is declining while the number of minority students is increasing. This need for more minority teachers is even more critical in urban public schools characterized by large percentages of minority students …

Reading In-Between The Lines: Exploring The Experience Of Cultivating Cultural Awareness With White Teacher Candidates In A Liberal Arts University In Georgia, Holley Morris Roberts

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

This study was to explore the use of critical literacy (Freire, 1998) to assist predominately White teacher candidates in their preparation to teach diverse groups of students. Seven White females, who were born and reared in Georgia, participated in the study. These participants were encouraged to critically examine their personal, racial, and cultural roots through autobiographical papers, literature circles using African American children's books, critical reflective papers responding to the literature circles, conversations, and interviews. Three bodies of research provided the theoretical framework for the study: White identity theory (Kunjufu, 2002, McIntyre, 1997, Wise, 2008), critical literacy theory (Freire, 1974, …

Nagorno Karabakh Conflict: Problems And Possibilities For Political Resolution, Jessica Williams

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

The argument that democratic states do not go to war with one another, better known by political scientists and international relations theorists as the democratic peace proposition, remains one of the most difficult to dispute phenomena in state's relations with one another. Immanuel Kant argued over two hundred years ago that three components were necessary in order for dyads to behave peacefully toward one another: institutionalized democracy, closely intertwined economies, and international organizations. In this thesis, I analyze a specific dyad, Armenia and Azerbaijan, which in the early 1990s, had a war over the territory of Nagorno Karabakh. A cease-fire …

Parental Involvement In A Northwest Georgia School District, Veronica T. Hunter

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

For decades, parental involvement has had a direct impact on the success of children. Portions of the No Child Left Behind Act include important requirements for schools, districts, and states to organize programs for parental involvement and to implement ways to communicate with parents and the public about student achievement and the quality and performance of schools. According to Gonzalez (2002), teachers and administrators struggle with the lack of parental involvement on a daily basis. He concludes that finding ways to make parents feel more comfortable and welcome would improve the communication and relationship between parents and schools. The purpose …