Education Commons^™

Multimodal Assessment In Action: What We Really Value In New Media Texts, Kathleen M. Baldwin

Doctoral Dissertations

As the Framework for Success in Postsecondary Writing illustrates, writing teachers at all educational levels can no longer ignore multimodality and the challenges that come with incorporating multimodal writing—texts composed using a combination of sound, images, video, etc.—into the classroom (NCTE, Framework). A chief struggle most writing teachers face is how to evaluate the multimodal texts their students produce, texts that are inherently diverse. In answer to the calls of scholars such as Yancey, Herrington, and Moran for research exploring multimodal assessment in situated classroom practice, my dissertation examines what K-16 writing teachers are and should be valuing in …

Young Children Positioned As Storytellers In The Classroom: An Examination Of Teacher-Child Interactions And The Storytelling Event, Peggy L. Martalock

Doctoral Dissertations

ABSTRACT YOUNG CHILDREN POSITIONED AS STORYTELLERS IN THE CLASSROOM: AN EXAMINATION OF TEACHER-CHILD INTERACTIONS AND THE STORYTELLING EVENT SEPTEMBER 2016 PEGGY MARTALOCK, B.A., UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN MADISON M.A. UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN LACROSSE Ed.D., UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS AMHERST Directed by: Professor Claire E. Hamilton Responsive, well-attuned, sensitive, dynamic, and individual interactions between teachers and children in early childhood classrooms support language and literacy development. This study looks at the nature and qualities of teacher – child interactions during Vivian Paley’s storytelling approach when implemented as a curricular activity. This is a microethnographic study conducted from a socio-cultural theoretical framework of two …

Shared Focus/Collective Responsibility: The Lived Experience Of Educators As Members Of A Data Team In A Connecticut Public High School, Abbie-Jean M. Lareau

Doctoral Dissertations

ABSTRACT SHARED FOCUS/COLLECTIVE RESPONSIBILITY: THE LIVED EXPERIENCE OF EDUCATORS AS MEMBERS OF A DATA TEAM IN A CONNECTICUT PUBLIC HIGH SCHOOL This study explores the experiences of five high school English Teachers in a Connecticut public school acting as an Instructional Data Team as prescribed by the Connecticut Accountability for Learning (CALI) model. Data Teams are teams of educators that participate in collaborative, structured, scheduled meetings, which focus on the effectiveness of teaching as determined by student achievement. Data Teams adhere to continuous improvement cycles, analyze trends, and determine strategies to facilitate analysis that results in action. Data Teams can …

Turning Around The Culture Of Teaching And Learning: A Turnaround School Success Story, Rachael B. Lawrence

Doctoral Dissertations

In 2009-2010, Riverton Elementary School in Portland, ME was awarded a School Improvement Grant (SIG), supported by the Federal Department of Education (Federal DOE) through the Maine Department of Education. With this funding, Riverton undertook the challenge of the turnaround school model between 2010-2013, which resulted in positive change in academic achievement for their students and an improved teaching and learning climate and culture. This dissertation examines why the turnaround model may work, what is currently known about SIG funded turnaround schools, and what the specific actions and changes that led to the successful turnaround of this school were. While …

Reclaiming Voices And Identities: An Examination Of African American Educators’ Experiences Before And After Brown V. Board Of Education, Leta Hooper

Doctoral Dissertations

The Brown v. Board of Education rulings in 1954 and 1955 are often regarded as cases that set the precedent for dismantling schools operating on a racially “separate but equal” system. The outcome of the Brown v. Board of Education rulings led to the closing of Black schools as well as the dismissal and displacement of Black educators (Fultz, 2004). Black educators’ experiences of teaching in segregated and desegregated schools, as well as their role in challenging inequitable education conditions, are topics that continue to be ignored in mainstream society (Fultz, 1995; 2004; Siddle-Walker, 2013). The purpose of this life …

Oil Spills, Dominique Kiki Carey, Corrine Losch, Rebecca Howard, Erica Light, Stephanie Purington

Case Study Lesson Plans for Teachers

While the global market is still highly dependent on oil and fossil fuels, society must be aware of the dangers and repercussions of mishandling of this oil. Oil spills are too often forgotten about after the original media rush, and conversations about cleanup methods are neglected. In this case study, we have students to look into the ramifications of an important oil spill, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in 2010. We challenge students to look into possible cleanup solutions for oil spills in order to encourage critical thought around an issue that is common in today’s world.

In this case …

Ocean Acidification, Dominique Kiki Carey, Corrine Losch, Rebecca Howard, Erica Light, Stephanie Purington

Case Study Lesson Plans for Teachers

It is hard to imagine that, as humans, we could significantly change the vast expanses of the open ocean. However, as we release more and more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, it diffuses into the oceans, making them increasingly more acidic. Ocean acidification is often described as the lesser known twin of climate change. A drop in pH could endanger shelled organisms, change fish behavior and have unpredictable consequences on countless other species as well as our own society. Ocean acidification has the potential to cause devastating changes, so it is critical that we all develop more awareness of it. …

Sustainability, Dominique Kiki Carey, Corrine Losch, Rebecca Howard, Erica Light, Stephanie Purington

Case Study Lesson Plans for Teachers

In the face of climate change, overflowing landfills, water shortages, and exploitation of natural resources, it is becoming increasingly important to act in responsible and sustainable ways. Environmental sustainability is the intersection of social, economic and environmental solutions to address issues threatening the world we live in. Too often in our society, sustainability is not prioritized and becomes an afterthought. In this case study, we challenge students to explore ways to make our world more sustainable, bringing these important issues into the consciousness of the next generation.

In this case study, students can choose the topic they wish to study …

Antibiotic Resistance, Dominique Kiki Carey, Corrine Losch, Rebecca Howard, Erica Light, Stephanie Purington

Case Study Lesson Plans for Teachers

Many people think that a world without antibiotics is a thing of the past, but we are on the cusp of becoming a generation without cures to the simplest bacterial infections. The more often we expose bacteria to antibiotics, the higher the chance of resistance to the drug forming. In today’s society, where any health issue is met with a drug and livestock are being pumped full of antibiotics, more infections are growing resistant to the drugs we use to combat them. Students will investigate the current situation, find solutions to the waning effectiveness of antibiotics, and encourage a behavioral …

Patterns Around Us Presentation, Benny Davidovitch

Patterns Around Us

No abstract provided.

The Open Hub: How Libraries Facilitate Oer, Jeremy Smith

University Libraries Presentations Series

An examination of the role of libraries in the support of Open Educational Resources at the University of Massachusetts Amherst

Invasive Species, Robin Harrington

Science and Engineering Saturday Seminars

No abstract provided.

Mcclphei Staff Development Summer Workshop Day 2016, Jeremy Smith

University Libraries Presentations Series

A summary of the Open Education Initiative at UMass Amherst. Presented to the Massachusetts Commonwealth Consortium of Libraries in Public Higher Education Institutions, Inc.during their summer workshop.