Education Commons^™

Adapting For Anti-Racism: Collaboratively Diversifying Faculty Open Professional Development, Stacy Katz, Sherry L. Deckman

Publications and Research

Higher education institutions have become increasingly interested in exploring the innovative learning opportunities afforded by open educational resources and practices (OER). These same institutions have begun to more seriously consider ways to eradicate racism. However, few institutions have considered the ways that OER may prove useful in dismantling anti-racism and how to prepare instructional faculty to do so. Given their expertise and research skills, librarians may be uniquely positioned to take on this role. In this paper, we explore one such online asynchronous effort–adaptation and implementation of the Open for Anti-Racism faculty workshop in Learning Management System – and offer …

How Do Graduate Students Approach College Teaching? Influences Of Professional Development, Teaching Assistantships, And Big Five Personality Traits, Elizabeth S. Che, Patricia J. Brooks, Anna M. Schwartz, Ethlyn S. Saltzman, Ronald C. Whiteman

Publications and Research

Introduction: Graduate students engage in college teaching with varied attitudes and approaches. Their teaching practices may be influenced by professional development experiences related to pedagogy, and their personality traits.

Methods: Through an online survey of graduate students teaching undergraduate courses (N = 109, 69.7% women, M age = 30 years, 59% psychology), we examined whether self-reported participation in professional development related to pedagogy, teaching assistantship (TA) experience, academic discipline (psychology vs. other), and Big Five personality traits were associated with variation in teaching practices.

Results: Participation in professional development correlated positively with years of undergraduate teaching experience and with …

In Plain Sight: Oppressive Dynamics And Learning Challenges In Adult Esol Programs In The United States, David A. Housel

Publications and Research

A previous convergent mixed methods study conducted by the author revealed that, based on their preservice preparation and access to in-service professional development, instructors of adult emergent bi/multilingual learners (EBLs) in the United States often felt ill-equipped to address the oppressive dynamics and learning challenges that might manifest in their adult ESOL classrooms. This follow-up interview study explored the prevalence of these oppressive dynamics, such as racism, sexism, and linguicism, and learning challenges, such as neurodiversity, and investigated how preservice preparation, continuous professional development, program administration, and the field of TESOL might address these issues more consistently and equitably. Semi-structured …

Instructors Reflect On How Their Preservice Preparation And Ongoing Professional Development Prepared Them To Address Oppressive Dynamics In Adult Esol Programs In The United States, David A. Housel

Publications and Research

For decades, researchers have asserted that the preservice preparation for instructors of adult emergent bi/multilingual learners (EBLs) in the United States can be inconsistent, and access to ongoing professional development (PD) can be insufficient to address the demands of the 21st century classroom. A previous study conducted by the author revealed that instructors of adult EBLs felt adequately prepared to teach English, but they often felt ill-equipped to address the learning challenges and oppressive dynamics that might manifest in their adult English to Speakers of Other Language (ESOL) classrooms. This convergentmixed methods studywas a preliminary attempt to address these issues. …

Worth The Time: Exploring The Faculty Experience Of Oer Initiatives, Stacy Katz, Shawna M. Brandle

Publications and Research

Open Educational Resources (OER) initiatives, organized efforts to facilitate the adoption of OER, are increasing in popularity throughout the United States as a means of encouraging faculty to teach with these materials. Faculty participate in these initiatives despite other demands on their time and the lack of recognition for OER usage in the tenure and promotion process. To better understand this phenomenon, the authors conducted in-depth interviews with full-time faculty at senior colleges of the City University of New York (CUNY) and thematically analyzed the transcripts. Faculty were interviewed across colleges, teaching disciplines, and tenure status, yet their experiences with …

Exploring Algebraic Thinking: In-Service Teacher Experiences, Outcomes, And Perceptions From An Algebra For All Capstone Unit Plan Project, Alexander J. Lord, Tallin Lamonaca

Publications and Research

Taking algebra is often noted as a key component for student preparation for college and career success. However, this course often serves as a barrier for secondary students to overcome due to their lack of preparation for such abstract contexts and due to a lack of meaningful professional experiences available to assist teachers develop those concepts. Initiatives such as Algebra for All were started to help educators at all grade levels develop methods to expose their students to algebraic thinking. In New York City, a five-course Algebra for All sequence was created for in-service public school educators at a local …

Reflections On Preservice Preparation And Professional Development Among Instructors Of Adult Emergent Bi/Multilingual Learners, David A. Housel

Theses and Dissertations

The preservice preparation and ongoing professional development for instructors of adult emergent bi/multilingual learners (EBLs) in the United States has been characterized as “deeply uneven,” lacking uniformity, consistent academic rigor, and practical application to bolster instructors’ feelings of self-efficacy and agency in addressing their students’ complex learning needs. Using the Standards for ESL/EFL Teachers of Adults (2008) as a foundation, this explanatory sequential mixed methods research study explored the reflections of instructors of adult EBLs regarding their preservice preparation, ongoing professional development, and the guidance and support received from teaching colleagues and supervisors. The survey instrument developed contained a combination …

Journalism Through Learning Design, Geoff Decker

Capstones

Abstract

At its core, journalism is a civic enterprise with a mission to help citizens better understand their world and communities. Fulfilling this lofty mission in today’s digital media landscape poses new and evolving challenges, but it also presents a unique opportunity to reexamine the relationship between storytellers and their audiences. Advancements in the learning sciences in recent decades offer important insights into how the mind works. In teaching and learning, pedagogical experts and practitioners increasingly utilize these insights to refine and implement instructional strategies that increase student engagement, motivation, and learning. This capstone project aims to establish a framework …

Yes, You Can Get A Job With That Major! Goal 5 Strategies For Facilitating, Assessing, And Demonstrating Psychology Students’ Professional Development, Kristin M. Vespia, Karen Z. Naufel, Jerry Rudmann, Jaye F. Van Kirk, Deborah Briihl, Jason Young

Publications and Research

The Summit on the National Assessment of Psychology was held on June 2016 to chart a path for assessing student achievement of the goals of the undergraduate psychology major. Our subcommittee was charged with identifying evaluation strategies and tools for students’ professional development, which included applying psychology to various careers; engaging in effective self-regulation, project management, and teamwork; and developing lifelong professional skills. In this article, therefore, we not only review a wide range of assessment tools for facilitating and evaluating professional development in psychology, but we also discuss the larger importance of the learning goal both to students and …

A Narrative Inquiry To Explore The Connection Between Gender And Discipline In Grades Pre-K–8, Nicole Salazar

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Because behavioral discipline can impact children’s development, it is important to ensure that educators work in fair and unbiased ways with all children, across gender, race, and other groups. Biased disciplining of children’s behavior in classrooms can occur as micro-aggressions (McCabe, 2009), sometimes counter to what educators may believe about their own behavior. As a means of raising awareness of gender-biased treatment in classrooms, this thesis involved narrating – a dynamic activity that elicits accounts of events – and thus as a means of reflecting on behavior in everyday practices. Educators anonymously completed a questionnaire requesting narratives of various disciplinary …

Using Site Visits To Strengthen Collaboration, Victor Piercey, Rebecca Segal, Afroditi Vennie Filippas, Tao Chen, Soloman Kone, Rosalyn Hobson Hargraves, Jack Bookman, John Hearn, Debbie Pike, Kathy S. Williams

Publications and Research

The SUMMIT-P project is a multi-institutional endeavor to leverage interdisciplinary collaboration in order to improve the teaching of undergraduate mathematics courses in the first two years of college. One goal of this work is to establish collaborative communities among the institutions involved. As part of the project, institutions visit one another on site visits that are structured according to a common protocol. The site visits have been valuable to the project. Participating institutions report the exchange of actionable ideas and feedback; members of the grant leadership team have used the site visits to direct the overall project, and evaluators have …

The Equal Right To Sing: The American Zeitgeist And Its Implications For Music Education, Youngeun Kim

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

According to music educators and proponents of arts education, music education in U.S. public schools seems to be in jeopardy. This thesis brings attention to several issues in current music education. It is a case study of music education in New York City public elementary schools. First, it shows that music education is not equally distributed to all students in the public-school system and is especially unequal among elementary schools. Next, it investigates possible causes for this inequality, from the current system’s limitations to more fundamental causes including the cultural perception of music among the U.S. public. The consequences of …

Escribiendo Para Desahogarme: Release And Resistance In A Middle School Bilingual Writing Workshop, Carla Espana

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This dissertation examines a teacher’s language ideologies, their impact on curriculum modifications and bilingual Latinx middle schoolers’ storytelling, to understand how a bilingual pedagogy builds on their cultural and linguistic resources. This qualitative study was conducted in a sixth grade writing workshop class in New York City as the focus teacher taught the Teachers College Reading and Writing Project Personal Narrative Unit of Study. The first two findings center on the factors that influence a teacher’s stance on language practices and bilingual pedagogy, and how these contributed to curriculum modifications that included using students’ full linguistic and cultural repertoires, integrating …

Coalescence Of Research: Urban Advantage As A Learning Organization Structured To Support A Culture Of Inquiry, Marianne Williams

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This dissertation is a mixed methods study of the Urban Advantage Program- a Middle School Science Initiative formed by the New York City Department of Education and the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) in collaboration with New York City’s science culturally rich institutions – the Bronx Zoo, the Staten Island Zoo, the Hall of Science, the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, the Queens Botanical Garden, the New York Botanical Garden, and the New York Aquarium. Unprecedented in size and scope, UA brings together the largest school system in the largest city in the United States in a partnership with eight large …

Preparing Teachers To Work With Students With Emotional Regulation Difficulties, Dana E. Gottesman

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Difficulty with emotional regulation is a symptom common to many child psychological disorders and classroom-related problems. However, many children with emotional regulation difficulties do not receive adequate support in their classrooms. Although a variety of procedures have been used to help students improve their emotional regulation, there are very few studies that focus on training teachers to deliver classroom-based interventions that are designed to target a broad range of children with difficulties in emotional regulation. This current investigation measured the impact of a professional development program on emotional regulation on teachers’ responses to students with emotional regulation difficulties and their …

Caricature And Hyperbole In Preservice Teacher Professional Development, Mica Pollock, Candice Bocala, Sherry L. Deckman, Shari Dickstein-Staub

Publications and Research

Professional development (PD) “for diversity” aims to prepare teachers to support students from varying backgrounds to succeed, often in underresourced contexts. Although many teachers invite such inquiry as part of learning to teach, others resist “diversity” inquiry as extra to teaching, saying they cannot “do it all.” In this article, we discuss how preservice teachers at times caricature the requests of PD for diversity, hearing the task as a call to undertake superhuman tasks and to be people other than who they are. We argue that these caricatures require direct acknowledgment by both preservice teachers and teacher educators working in …

Opening Up The Dialogue Across Disciplines: Making Room For Inquiry And Creativity From Pre-Kindergarten Through University, Amanda Nicole Gulla, Limor Pinhasi-Vittorio, Alison Lehner-Quam

Publications and Research

Professional development with teachers, whether they are in pre-K-12 schools or in higher education, creates opportunities for discussions among teachers and teacher educators about how to find spaces for creativity and the imagination within the struc- ture of the Common Core State Standards, a set of national standards adopted on a state- by-state basis in the U.S. Two education faculty members and an education librarian from a large city university held workshops, bringing together university faculty in arts and humanities, science, mathematics and education, and pre-K-12 teachers to explore the potential for inquiry and creativity in the Common Core State …

Play A Game, Make A Game: Getting Creative With Professional Development For Library Instruction, Maura A. Smale

Publications and Research

Using games in the library classroom is an active learning strategy that can increase student engagement. However, not all librarians are equally familiar and comfortable with bringing game-based learning to the library. Game On for Information Literacy is a brainstorming card game to help librarians create games for information literacy and library instruction. Inspired by other successful brainstorming card games, this game was developed, playtested, and iterated over several years in workshops, graduate-level MLIS courses, and professional development programs. Game materials are all available to download, use, remix, and share.

Improving Motivation, Engagement And Differentiation In Lesson Development Using An Interactive White Board: 10-Hour Workshop Cycle Toward Professional Development Certificate, Leslie Lieman, Jenelle Fiori, Naliza Sadik

Publications and Research

The School of Education prepares aspiring teachers for teaching in 21st century classrooms by offering intensive interactive white board training cycles. In designing interactive lessons, the workshop cycle focuses on the pedagogical decision making that can improve classroom teaching and student engagement and understanding.

Collecting & Infusing Locally Relevant Video To Support Teacher Learning, Aliex Ross, Jeanne Peloso, Nancy Dubetz, Laura H. Baecher, Leslie Lieman, Naliza Sadik

Publications and Research

Context: Although online teaching videos are easy to find, few demonstrate locally relevant models for our aspiring teachers. Lehman College School of Education began a project in Fall 2014 to collect locally relevant video of teaching and student learning to demonstrate key practices in the field. We identified classrooms of highly competent program graduates as well as Professional Development Network Schools (PDS) teachers working in classrooms with co-teaching models and/or work with English Language Learners. 6 teachers and 2 literacy coaches from our Bronx public school PDS classrooms welcomed us to videotape teaching and student learning. Teachers and Lehman College …

Improving Motivation, Engagement And Differentiation In Lesson Development Using An Interactive White Board, Jenelle Fiori, Leslie Lieman

Publications and Research

No abstract provided.

Infusing Locally Relevant Video To Support Teacher Learning, Leslie Lieman, Aliex Ross, Jeanne Peloso, Nancy Cubetz, Laura Baecher

Publications and Research

No abstract provided.

Humanities Unbound: Supporting Careers And Scholarship Beyond The Tenure Track, Katina Rogers

Publications and Research

As humanities scholars increasingly recognize the value of public engagement, and as the proportion of tenure-track faculty positions available continues to decline, many humanities programs are focusing renewed attention on equipping graduate students for careers as scholars both within and beyond academe. To support those efforts, the Scholarly Communication Institute has carried out a study investigating perceptions about career preparation provided by humanities graduate programs. The survey results help to create a more solid foundation on which to base curricular reform and new initiatives by moving the conversation about varied career paths from anecdote to data. The findings make it …

Supervisor Use Of Video As A Tool In Teacher Reflection, Laura H. Baecher, Bede Mccormack, Shiao-Chuan Kung

Publications and Research

Supervisors play a critical role in fostering teacher candidates’ reflective thinking on their practice, yet too often it is the supervisor, rather than the teacher, doing most of the observation work. Video-­‐based supervision offers a promising alternative, as teachers have an opportunity to examine their own lesson and thus engage with the supervisor in a more collaborative conference. In this paper, we explore the ways supervisors approach video in their conferencing with teachers as a vehicle for teacher reflective practice at one TESOL master’s program in the USA. We examine what supervisors find salient in video observations, how they approach …

Internalizing Disorders In Early Childhood: Professional Development Framework For Teachers, Danielle Guttman

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Recent research indicates that internalizing disorders such as depression, anxiety, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) manifest in young children. Since early childhood teachers spend a substantial portion of their day with young children, it is important to examine their beliefs and behaviors surrounding these disorders. The role of the school psychologist has come to include providing support for educators such as presenting up-to-date research through professional development (PD). The current investigation implemented an intervention designed to compare different forms of PD seminars ("Information" and "Strategies") designed to increase teachers' awareness of internalizing disorders in early childhood. Ninety-nine participants comprised the …

A Primer For Mathematical Modeling, Marla A. Sole

Publications and Research

With the implementation of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics recommendations and the adoption of the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics, modeling has moved to the forefront of K-12 education. Modeling activities not only reinforce purposeful problem-solving skills, they also connect the mathematics students learn in school with the mathematics they will use outside of school. Instructors have found mathematical modeling difficult to teach. To successfully incorporate modeling activities I believe that curricular changes should be accompanied by professional development for curriculum developers, classroom teachers, and higher education professionals. This article serves as an introduction to modeling by …

Friendship, Education, And Justice Teaching: The Professional Development Of Two Teacher-Friends, Debbie Sonu

Publications and Research

This paper discusses the distinct nature of friendship between teachers. Using literature on both the philosophical study of friendship and that of professional development, I present data from a qualitative study with two elementary school teachers in New York City in order to explore how the benefits of friendship might deepen an understanding of one's work with students. While literature on professional development tends to focus on effectively designed and structured activity, this article highlights the importance of teacher amity in (a) staving off negative judgments about teacher work, (b) harnessing the freedom to create and err, and (c) cultivating …