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Silky Ears And Secret Letters, Denise Larae Kuethe-Strudthoff

Graduate Research Papers

The purpose of this graduate project was for the writer to finish Silky Ears and Secret Letters, a chapter book for readers in grades three through seven. The main character in the story is Marcie Hargate, a sixth grader who does not fit in with her peers and who endures her classmates' taunting. Marcie's only friend is her basset hound, Rutherford. Rutherford is Marcie's confidante; and when she starts to receive letters signed by "Ghost Girl," the basset hound is the first to know. The letters from Ghost Girl worry Marcie because Ghost Girl often suggests in her letters that …

Aspects Of Cultural Literacy In Elementary Reading/Literature Textbooks, Linda Neilsen

Graduate Research Papers

In his 1987 book, Cultural Literacy: What Every American Needs to know E. D. Hirsch, Jr. contended that current elementary textbooks contain very little of the traditional literature which students need to know. For this research, nine elementary reading/literature textbook series were analyzed for their use of seven types of traditional literature: fable, fairy tale, folktale, legend, myth, nursery rhyme, and tall tale. It was found that less than ten percent of the reading selections in the selected textbook series would fit the criteria to be considered traditional literature entries. Furthermore, it was found that, in the selected series, textbooks …

Survey Of Middle Level Education In The Department Of Defense Dependents Schools - Pacific Region, John C. Mueller

Graduate Research Papers

This was a descriptive study of the use and practices and the desirability of the practices in middle level education as perceived by the teachers and administrators in the Department of Defense Dependents Schools in the Pacific Region. It appears from the data that DoDDS-Pacific Region is in the beginning stages of acceptance and implementation of both middle school philosophy and current practices. Support for prominent middle level practices such as interdisciplinary teaming and advisor-advisee programs was marginal. Nowhere was there evidence of a high level of implementation of current middle school practices. Administrators were consistently higher in their perception …

Computer-Based Technology In Aea 7 Schools, 1994, Julie Heitland

Graduate Research Papers

The purpose of this study was to determine the extent to which school library media centers in one Area Education Agency region (AEA 7) in northeast Iowa are selecting, funding, and making available the new computer-based technologies. A confidential questionnaire was sent to 110 public and non-public schools in May, 1994. Media specialists in 77 schools responded. The results of the survey showed that a) the top-ranked determinant used in selecting computer-based technology was curriculum need, b) the top-ranked source of funding for the purchase of new technology was the local school budget, c) the most widely available computer-based technology …

School-Home Partnership To Promote Literacy, Cheryl L. Adam

Graduate Research Papers

Parents are the primary influence on young children's emergent literacy. They provide the first and most important models of involvement in the language processes for their children. Children who observe their parents reading and writing in the home environment come to believe that these activities are important.

The purpose of this paper is to explore ways that parents of first graders can be engaged as partners with the school to nurture their children's emerging literacy. First, a review of professional literature concerning what parents need to know about emerging literacy among young primary-age children and how teachers can assist parents …

Developmentally Appropriate Practices: Strengths And Weaknesses, Barbara Ford

Graduate Research Papers

This paper is a review of the literature relative to developmentally appropriate practices in early childhood education. The primary focus of this paper was to look at the strengths and weaknesses of developmentally appropriate practices in today's early childhood classroom. Developmentally appropriate practice (DAP) was described and discussed in the research as the following: age appropriate, and individually appropriate practices and curricula for early childhood students and educators (National Association for the Education of Young Children). Early childhood research and theory was discussed to determine the need for careful planning when teaching young children. The critical side of the issue …

Planning A School Technology In-Service For Kindergarten Through Secondary School Teachers, Ancillary Staff, And Administrators, Joan R. Hammelman

Graduate Research Papers

The increasing demand for technological literacy in our global economy affects all areas of schools. The principle of technological literacy, or more specifically, technological knowledge and skills, permeates every aspect of school systems. It crosses all administrative lines, enters office and classroom settings, affects quality of educational delivery, and can help raise the potential level of life-skills for both educational professionals and students to incomprehensible new heights (Presley & Freitas, 1990). This project will deal with raising the level of technological literacy for educational professionals which should eventually result in increased levels of technological literacy of the students.

Nonverbal Communication In The Work Place As Perceived By Men And Women, Judith Lou Loonan

Graduate Research Papers

In order to understand the issue of nonverbal communication in the workplace as perceived by men and women, the work history of men and women and how they arrived at the present point of communication must be looked at. It must also be established what the meaning of nonverbal communication is. This research will provide a guide to establish these two points. After World War II, and especially within the past 20 years, more and more women have entered the work force. "It is estimated that by the year 2000, the percentage of women will grow to 50% of the …

The Impact Of Infusing Strong Female Literary Characters Into A Seventh Grad Language Arts Program, Laura M. Petersen

Graduate Research Papers

This study examined the effect on young adolescent's self esteem of infusing strong female literary characters into a seventh grade language arts curriculum. For a period of four months one section of the seventh grade class was exposed to literature that had strong females as primary characters. Students in a second section used traditional seventh grade literature which had an over-representation of strong male characters. The Coopersmith Self-Esteem was given as a pre-test and a post-test to measure the impact of the intervention. Results show no pre-post test score changes in either section.

Fostering Home-School Relationships To Nurture Children's Literacy, Jenette M. Schulte

Graduate Research Papers

The purpose of this paper is to explore ways teachers can promote a relationship between the home and school to nurture the literacy of primary-age children. A review of professional literature will address the home environment's influence on children's emerging literacy, ways parents can support their children's school program, and avenues teachers can use in communicating with parents. From this information base, the writer will plan ways to foster school-home communication.

A Comparative Study Of Composition Elements By Elementary Students Using Computer Technology, Mary Elizabeth Streich

Graduate Research Papers

The purpose of this study was to investigate how the use of a word processor for writing composition differed in the number of words and sentences when compared to handwriting composition samples. In addition, the study compared the types of words and sentences used in the writing samples. There is a need for empirical evidence on the effect of a word processor on children's writing. The subjects (N = 38) in the study were sixth-grade students at North Tama Elementary School, Traer, Iowa.

Use Of Electronic Bulletin Board Systems In Iowa Public School Districts, Sylvia Stearns

Graduate Research Papers

This study was performed to learn if Iowa public schools were using internal or external BBS. Public school districts were assigned a number in the Iowa Educational Directory. 1992-93. then using a random table, one hundred school districts were chosen. A letter, a questionnaire, and a self-addressed, stamped envelope were addressed to the superintendent asking him/her to forward the items to someone in the district who was knowledgeable about BBS. The letter, questionnaire, and envelope were sent April 30, 1993 and were the recipients were asked to return the questionnaire to the researcher by May 14, 1993. Of the questionnaires …

Adolescents And Aids Education: A Role For School Psychologists, Tanya I. Clausen

Graduate Research Papers

Acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) is a disease that is affecting many people throughout the world (Ralston, 1988). The virus that causes AIDS is known as the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). AIDS is considered the epidemic of our generation. It has tested scientific knowledge, questioned private values, and depleted our strength (Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 1993a). To face the many challenges that lie ahead, adolescents must have scientific, dependable information about HIV and AIDS (CDC, 1993b). AIDS was first reported in the United States in 1981 (Benza & Zumwalde, 1987; CDC, 1993a). By the end of 1992, …

Parent Participation And Partnership With Professional Educators, Beth Ann Thompson

Graduate Research Papers

American families today have life-styles that are different from the life-styles lived by the parents when they were children. Although children are spending more time away from parents due to parental work demands, the parents are still the most important people in their children's lives (Gestwicki, 1987). It is universally accepted that the family, not the school, is the most vital single contextual influence on the development of the child (Carlson, 1986).

A Preferred Vision For Administering Elementary Schools: A Reflective Essay, Shalley K. Kappenman

Graduate Research Papers

How it all began ...

July 31, 1991 (8:30 PM) 1 After a long and busy day, the phone rings. It is Kathi, a friend of mine, calling to see if I had a teaching job for the upcoming school year. Kathi had recently visited with a former colleague who was concerned that her school would not have a principal for the new school year. The principal of this small parochial school 25 miles from Storm Lake had just resigned to take another principalship in Eastern Iowa. Kathi had talked to the priest/superintendent and had mentioned my name. He requested …

Technology: Connecting People And Places, Richard Stahlhut

Faculty Publications

The College of Education at the University of Northern Iowa (UNI) established collaborative partnership agreements with nine major school districts in Iowa where UNI student teachers were placed. One collaborative project connected the campus coordinator with the nine off-campus sites through the campus computer network (Caucus). In the 1993-94 school year the transition to Internet is being made. This paper describes: (1) how the UNI computer network (Caucus) was developed and extended; (2) projects that caused practitioners to become active partners in the UNI Teacher Education program; (3) projects such as newsletters; establishment of mentor programs for student teachers; and …

Promoting Cultural Diversity And Sensitivity In The Basic Communication Course, Paul J. Siddens Iii

Faculty Publications

The University of Northern Iowa is fully committed to the ideas of equal opportunity; cultural diversity and sensitivity. The Oral Communication Basic Course Program in the Communication Studies Department is fully committed to teaching students to appreciate and actively use principles of cultural diversity and sensitivity in their daily lives. Toward that end; there are several tools the instructors use in mass lectures and classroom recitation sections; and that they will use in their Oral Communication Basic Course Computer Laboratory; to teach students about cultural diversity and sensitivity; including textbook selection; graduate student assistant and faculty orientation; class exercises; and …

A Preferred Vision For Administering Secondary Schools: A Reflective Essay, H. John Roberts

Graduate Research Papers

The job of the secondary principal has always been and continues to be important, demanding, and crucial to the success of a school. Many of the functions and elements of leadership required of school administrators in the past remain relevant and essential today. However, new dimensions are being demanded, and a new focus is forming for the leaders of the modern school.

Portfolio Assessment - Use Of Literacy Portfolio In The Primary Classroom, Diane E. Rasmussen

Graduate Research Papers

This study reviews the literature on portfolios by looking closely at the literature dealing with literacy portfolios in the primary classroom. The following questions were addressed: ( 1) why do we need portfolios; (2) what are the characteristics of portfolios; (3) what are some of the difficulties of portfolio assessment: and ( 4) what are the standards that a good portfolio should meet for use in a primary classroom? There is a move away from standardized testing and portfolios offer a promise of being a successful alternative form of assessment. Portfolios offer instructional guidance for student, teachers and parents. The …

A Constructivist Instructional Project On Developing Geometric Problem Solving Abilities Using Pattern Blocks And Tangrams With Young Children, Christie E. Sales

Graduate Research Papers

This instructional project planned and implemented mathematical instruction for young children based upon recommendations by both the National Association for the Education for Young Children and the National Council for Teachers of Mathematics. Specifically, the project presented children with a variety of geometric problem solving tasks that involved spatial reasoning. Two kinds of geometric materials, pattern blocks and tangrams, were used together with a set of frames designed to provide problem solving tasks. Examples of children's work and insights into the knowledge they constructed are presented. The tasks appeared to be interesting and appropriate. The children engaged in the tasks …

The Impact Of School District Mergers On Library Media Programs In Selected Iowa School Districts, Sandra Huemann-Kelly

Graduate Research Papers

With the current trend Iowa of school districts whole-grade sharing (WGS) with another school district followed by merging, the author examined the impact of such reorganization activities on library media programs in selected school districts. The case study approach was utilized to examine five districts. The author believed that changes occurred as a result in library media centers with most change discernible at the time WGS commenced rather than at the time of full merger. The first hypothesis was supported by evidence of change in library media centers in the areas of facilities, personnel, collections, finances and library media services. …

Balanced Reading Instruction: Birth Of A New Movement, Eljean B. Bartelt

Graduate Research Papers

The question of how best to teach children to read and write has been debated for years. Cunningham ( 1991) suggests that reading instruction began in the United States with a alphabetic approach. Children learned the letters, and then spelled and sounded out the letters of words. This approach was known later as the phonics approach. Some educators still insist that it is the only sensible approach to begin reading instruction (Adams, 1991; Stahl, 1992; Stahl & Miller, 1989; Teale, 1991). The most commonly used reading material in reading instruction has been the basal reader (Chall, 1983; May, 1994). Basals …

School Librarians And Their Work Place: A Study Of Terminology Preference, Judith A. Palumbo-Gates

Graduate Research Papers

Two sets of 1992 periodicals were studied to determine terminology preferences, one set written by and for school librarianship professionals, the other written by and for educators. Word counts were taken of the traditional terms "library"/"librarian" and the newer accepted terms "media center"/"media specialist", the latter adopted by the American Association of School Librarians over a 24 year period. The data showed 24% of librarianship professionals mix terms, 40% use accepted terms exclusively, and 35% use traditional terms exclusively. A majority either mix terms or use the traditional. Among educator authors, 86% were found to use traditional terminology 50% or …

Evaluation Of Library Media Specialists In Iowa Schools, Bonnie Rawding

Graduate Research Papers

The purpose of this study was to determine the criteria and procedures used in the evaluation of library media specialists in Iowa. Of particular concern was the inclusion of the roles and responsibilities of library media specialists as established in "Information Power" in evaluation instruments. The sample of 100 library media specialists was asked to fill in a questionnaire and return a blank copy of their evaluation instrument. The return rate was 70%.

Seventy-seven percent of library media specialists in the sample are evaluated as teachers. Sixty-nine percent of the 13 library media specialist evaluation instruments contained 50% or more …

The Portrayal Of Iowa In Fiction Books For Children And Youth, Jeanette Gerrietts

Graduate Research Papers

This research study examined the content of books read by children and youth in grades three through twelve to determine how Iowa is portrayed in books published in the period from 1980 to the present. Questions studied were:

1. What characteristics of Iowa are found most frequently in fiction books for children and youth?

2. How accurate are these portrayals in reflecting the actual 3 characteristics of the state as reported in the 1980 and 1990 census?

In-Class And Pull-Out Models Of Remedial Reading Instruction For Fourth-Grade Students: A Descriptive Study, Elaine Hoke-Hoffman

Graduate Research Papers

This descriptive study was conducted to document and describe two approaches to remedial reading instruction, in-class or pull-in and out of class or pull-out models. The success of each of these models of remedial reading instruction was determined through evaluation of growth in reading as well as assessment of changes in student attitudes toward reading when placed in either in-class or pull-out settings. Significant growth in the area of reading development was demonstrated by students participating in both the in-class and pull-out models of instruction. Students in both settings also maintained or developed a positive attitude toward reading, but they …

An Examination Of The Relationships Among Learning Style, Attitudes, And Outcomes Of Computer-Assisted Instruction, Daniel Glen Wilson

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

This research was based upon a hypothesized AptitudeTreatment Interaction (ATI). More specifically, the research investigated the relationships between student learning style (aptitude) and student outcomes with computer-assisted instruction (treatment). These outcomes included student achievement with computer-assisted instruction (CAI) and student attitude toward CAI.

To examine these relationships, a researcher-developed CAI program on light and color theory was validated and administered to 144 students in an educational media course at the University of Northern Iowa. Participants in the study were first asked to complete the Grasha-Riechmann Student Learning Style Scales (GRSLSS) inventory along with a demographic survey. Next, each participant completed …

"Home Style" Campaigning: Bill Clinton In The 1992 General Election, Mary Stuckey

Iowa Journal of Communication

In 1972, James David Barber's controversial book, The Presidential Character: Predicting Performance in the White House performed the valuable function of focusing scholarly attention on the relationship between the character and the behavior of political actors. Barber's work is premised on the belief that evidence concerning one's character prior to election has predictive value concerning performance once in office. While the utility of the scholarly and journalistic emphasis on the private personality traits of our presidents remains unclear (George, 1974; Tulis, 1981; Nelson, 1988), it is profitable to study the question of character as a public construction rather than a …

Iowa Journal Of Communication, Volume 26, Number 1, Spring 1994 [Download Entire Issue]

Iowa Journal of Communication

No abstract provided.

Reinvesting A Nation: The Rhetoric Of Political Transformation In Poland, Cezar M. Omatowski

Iowa Journal of Communication

In The Book of Laughter and Forgetting, Milan Kundera suggests that the first step in liquidating a people ... is to erase its memory. Destroy its books, its culture, its history. Then have somebody write new books, manufacture a new culture, invent a new history. Before long the nation will begin to forget what it is and what it was. (159) In the last five years, in the wake of the collapse of the Soviet Union and the fall of its satellite regimes, the nations of Central and Eastern Europe have been engaged in the process of massive national reconstruction, …