Education Commons^™

Halting The Race To The Bottom: Urgent Interventions For The Improvement Of The Education Of English Language Learners In Massachusetts And Selected Districts, English Language Learners Sub-Committee, Massachusetts Board Of Elementary And Secondary Education

Gastón Institute Publications

Massachusetts students of limited English proficiency do better academically than students of limited English proficiency in other states. But relative to other students in the state, students of limited English proficiency in Massachusetts face a disadvantage greater than that faced by their peers in most states. This suggests that while the overall higher levels of education in the state benefit LEPs in Massachusetts relative to LEPs who attend schools in states where the quality of education is lower, current policy and practice leads to significantly greater inequality in this state. As the state takes steps to improve performance for all …

Improving Higher Education Through User-Inspired Research: Findings From Multi-National Needs Assessments, Joseph B. Berger

Joseph B. Berger

No abstract provided.

Improving Higher Education Through User-Inspired Research: Findings From Multi-National Needs Assessments, Joseph B. Berger

Joseph B. Berger

No abstract provided.

Athletics & Recreation Master Plan Sub‐Committee Final Report, Charlie Titus, Terry Condon, Chris Fitzgerald, Ken Mcbryde, Robert Burgess, Shaun Curry, Laurie Milliken, Chris Sweeney, Pavel Braude, Ryan Norton, Jack Looney, Susan Wolfson, Jain Ruvidich‐Higgins

Campus Master Planning Publications

In 2000 the Athletics & Recreation Department at UMass Boston Implemented a five year strategic plan that would more realistically align sports sponsorship with available financial and facility resources. We reduced the number of sports sponsored from 20 to 14 maintaining 7 sports for women and 7 sports for men. The only sports maintained without a facility were Men’s baseball and Cross Country Track. We eliminated football, swimming and indoor & outdoor track and field for men and women.

Since 2005 The Athletics & Recreation Department has been focused on University wide transition and planning efforts. In that period we …

Final Report Of The Information Technology Subcommittee For The Campus Master Plan, Apurva Mehta, Ramakrishna Ayyagari, Eric Berry, David Cesario, Christine Depalma, Peter Fejer, Meghan Flynn, Kitty Galaitsis, John Jessoe, Lusa Lo, Daniel Ortiz-Zapata, Virginia Perelson, Mike Pollard, Kathleen Polley, Jamie Soule

Campus Master Planning Publications

Through its work, data collection, outreach, and careful review of various studies and information, the committee is led to conclude that as it moves forward with implementation of its Master Plan, UMass Boston has a tremendous opportunity to plan for and design spaces that support and promote the learning, teaching, and research requirements of the campus community. It is hoped that the recommended guidelines and standards outlined in this report will assist and inform the planning and design of new and renovated campus facilities and specifically address the technological needs of classrooms, laboratories, offices, informal study areas, and social spaces …

Counting On Care Work: Human Infrastructure In Massachusetts, Randy Albelda, Mignon Duffy, Nancy Folbre

Center for Social Policy Publications

In Massachusetts, as in every other place in the world, all children need to be cared for and educated, everybody has physical and mental health needs that require attention, and some individuals need assistance with the daily tasks of life because of illness, age, or disability. The labor of meeting these needs – which we call care work – is a complex activity that has profound implications for personal, social and economic well-being. Care work is not just a cornerstone of our economy – it is a rock-bottom foundation. Care work provides the basis for our human infrastructure, and we …

Nerche Updates, Volume 5, Issue 2, New England Resource Center For Higher Education At The University Of Massachusetts Boston

NERCHE Bulletin

No abstract provided.

Teaching Ecological And Feminist Economics In The Principles Course, Julie A. Nelson, Neva Goodwin

Economics Faculty Publication Series

It can be difficult to incorporate ecological and feminist concerns into introductory courses, when one is also obliged to teach neoclassical analysis. In this essay we briefly describe how one might extend existing “multi-paradigmatic” approaches to feminist and ecological concerns, and then present an new alternative approach that may be more suitable for some students. This “broader questions and bigger toolbox” approach can be applied in both microeconomics and macroeconomics introductory classrooms.

Massachusetts Adult Basic Education And Esol Distance Learning Programs: How To Assess Student Readiness For Distance Learning?, Berna Kahraman, Amelia Mallona, Donna H. Friedman, Sarah Kuck Jalbert

Center for Social Policy Publications

This report presents the findings from the pilot screening process prepared by the Center for Social Policy (CSP) and implemented during December 2008-March 2009 by the adult basic education (ABE) online learning programs in MA which are funded by the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (ESE). The purposes of the pilot process were:

• To determine the effectiveness of screening tools in assessing participant characteristics, such as the skills, demographics, and life circumstances that are associated with success in online learning;
• To identify supports and interventions which students need in order to persist and succeed in online learning.

At the …

Bridging Worlds: Advocacy Stigma And The Challenge Of Teaching Writing To Secondary Ell Students, Laurie Zucker-Conde

Graduate Doctoral Dissertations

Standardized interviews with nine high school ESL teachers in nine Massachusetts high schools were conducted. The study examined current writing practices and teacher beliefs about ELL student capacity to achieve higher-level writing ability in the current high-stakes writing environment in urban public schools. Four major research questions were addressed: (1) How do teachers think about their role as advocates for ELL students? How do their classroom practices respond to the stigmatized position of ELL students? (2) How does ELL teacher advocacy influence how ELL teachers teach writing to ELL students? (3) How do teachers enable the higher-level writing abilities of …

Bringing Community College Students And Employers Together: A Guide For Employers And Career Centers In An Economic Decline, Jeffrey Craig

Critical and Creative Thinking Capstones Collection

This paper emerges from my work as Coordinator of Job Placement at Bristol Community College over the last 19 months, in which I have had the opportunity to try new approaches to problem-solving and pursue professional growth as I serve students in higher education. The recent economic crisis has left millions of Americans out of work across most sectors. Displaced workers are flocking to community colleges to upgrade and learn new skills with the goal of becoming more marketable to potential employers. Enrollments have soared, while costs have risen and budgets cut. These conditions place an undue burden on these …

Social Action Teaching: Engaging Middle School Students In Knowing And Doing In The Social Studies Classroom, Alyssa Hinkell

Critical and Creative Thinking Capstones Collection

For the past three years I have had countless opportunities to engage in rich thinking around teaching and learning. As a member of the Critical and Creative Thinking Program (CCT) at the University of Massachusetts, Boston I have been able to reflect on these experiences in the context of my own teaching, applying what I have learned to enrich my own craft. Over the past eight months I have devoted this thinking to a teaching method I call Social Action Teaching. This method has helped to engage and motivate my seventh grade students and I believe, if applied elsewhere, can …

Incorporating Service-Learning Into The Esl Curriculum: What Aspiring Practitioners Need To Know, Andres R. Reyes

Critical and Creative Thinking Capstones Collection

As an ESL teacher at a community college, my constant goal is to synergize teaching approaches and strategies so that in addition to maximizing students' language learning, their critical thinking skills, cultural competence, and reflectivity - as members of an increasingly growing multicultural society - are heightened. Most recently, I have been pursuing service-learning as a philosophy, pedagogy, and practice that can help students connect their classroom learning to concrete, exciting, and challenging learning situations beyond the classroom. This paper is an attempt to highlight service-learning as a powerful tool that can make a difference in students' lives as they …

Children's Story: Per-Se-Vere, Virginia De La Garza

Critical and Creative Thinking Capstones Collection

We constantly come across problems or challenges that have no predetermined answer or solution. Perseverance is a very important disposition that makes us persist in the search of something we have started. I believe that people who want to persevere not only need to be motivated but, more importantly, they need to understand what it takes to persevere or, in other words, know how to persevere. Developing strategies to face and overcome confusion, obstacles, and frustrations is needed for learning. The teaching of Intellectual Perseverance is frequently taken for granted or not taught appropriately. Attitudes, dispositions, and habits of mind …

Exploring The Teaching Mind: Extending Participation In Lifelong Learning Through Engagement With A Supportive Community, Jeremy Szteiter

Critical and Creative Thinking Capstones Collection

This paper extends the notion of lifelong learning beyond gaining knowledge over a lifetime to preparing oneself to teach what has been learned to others. The "Teaching Mind," as I define the idea, involves thinking about what has been learned and what one knows by reconsidering that knowledge through the eyes of self as a teacher. The Teaching Mind assumes a broad notion of teaching that relates to informal and community learning across all areas of life and culture, beyond professional teaching in formal schools. The pursuit of the Teaching Mind is highly accessible to all those who wish to …

Institute Brief: Advancing Parent-Professional Leadership: Effective Strategies For Building The Capacity Of Parent Advisory Councils In Special Education, Heike Boeltzig, Matthew Kusminsky, Susan M. Foley, Richard Robison, Barbara Popper, Marilyn Gutierrez-Wilson

The Institute Brief Series, Institute for Community Inclusion

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, last amended in 2004 (IDEA 2004), encourages parents and educators to work collaboratively, emphasizing that as a team they are uniquely suited to make decisions that help improve the educational experiences and outcomes of children with disabilities. The Advancing Parent-Professional Leadership in Education (APPLE) Project was funded to develop the leadership skills of parents individually and within their communities. The project took place in Massachusetts, where school districts are required to have a special education parent advisory council (SEPAC).

English Learners In Boston Public Schools: Enrollment, Engagement And Academic Outcomes Of Native Speakers Of Cape Verdean Creole, Chinese Dialects, Haitian Creole, Spanish, And Vietnamese, Miren Uriarte, Nicole Lavan, Nicole Agusti, Mandira Kala, Faye Karp, Peter Nien-Chu Kiang, Lusa Lo, Rosann Tung, Cassandra Villari

Gastón Institute Publications

This study focuses on the academic experience of English Learners (ELs) in Boston’s public schools in the year before and in the three years following the implementation of Referendum Question 2. In 2002, this referendum spelled an end to Transitional Bilingual Education (TBE) as the primary program available for children requiring language support in Massachusetts public schools, replacing it with Sheltered English Immersion (SEI). Specifically, this report focuses on the enrollment and academic outcomes of the five largest groups of native speakers of languages other than English in the Boston Public Schools: speakers of Spanish, Chinese dialects, Vietnamese, Haitian Creole, …

English Learners In Boston Public Schools: Enrollment And Educational Outcomes Of Native Speakers Of Haitian Creole, Miren Uriarte, Cassandra Villari, Nicole Lavan, Faye Karp

Gastón Institute Publications

In November 2002, the voters of Massachusetts approved Referendum Question 2. This referendum spelled an end to Transitional Bilingual Education (TBE) as the primary program available for children requiring language support in Massachusetts. In its place came a radically different policy called Sheltered English Immersion (SEI). Unlike TBE, which relies on the English learners’ own language to facilitate the learning of academic subjects as they master English, SEI programs rely on the use of simple English in the classroom to impart academic content; teachers use students’ native language only to assist them in completing tasks or to answer a question. …

English Learners In Boston Public Schools: Enrollment And Educational Outcomes Of Native Spanish Speakers, Miren Uriarte, Nicole Lavan, Nicole Agusti, Faye Karp

Gastón Institute Publications

In November 2002, the voters of Massachusetts approved Referendum Question 2. This referendum spelled an end to Transitional Bilingual Education (TBE) as the primary program available for children requiring language support in Massachusetts. In its place came a radically different policy called Sheltered English Immersion (SEI). Unlike TBE, which relies on the English learners’ own language to facilitate the learning of academic subjects as they master English, SEI programs rely on the use of simple English in the classroom to impart academic content; teachers use students’ native language only to assist them in completing tasks or to answer a question. …

English Learners In Boston Public Schools: Enrollment And Educational Outcomes Of Native Speakers Of Cape Verdean Creole, Miren Uriarte, Nicole Lavan, Nicole Agusti, Faye Karp

Gastón Institute Publications

In November 2002, the voters of Massachusetts approved Referendum Question 2. This referendum spelled an end to Transitional Bilingual Education (TBE) as the primary program available for children requiring language support in Massachusetts. In its place came a radically different policy called Sheltered English Immersion (SEI). Unlike TBE, which relies on the English learners’ own language to facilitate the learning of academic subjects as they master English, SEI programs rely on the use of simple English in the classroom to impart academic content; teachers use students’ native language only to assist them in completing tasks or to answer a question. …

English Learners In Boston Public Schools: Enrollment And Educational Outcomes Of Native Speakers Of Vietnamese, Mandira Kala, Peter Nien-Chu Kiang, Nicole Lavan, Faye Karp

Gastón Institute Publications

In November 2002, the voters of Massachusetts approved Referendum Question 2. This referendum spelled an end to Transitional Bilingual Education (TBE) as the primary program available for children requiring language support in Massachusetts. In its place came a radically different policy called Sheltered English Immersion (SEI). Unlike TBE, which relies on the English learners’ own language to facilitate the learning of academic subjects as they master English, SEI programs rely on the use of simple English in the classroom to impart academic content; teachers use students’ native language only to assist them in completing tasks or to answer a question. …

English Learners In Boston Public Schools: Enrollment And Educational Outcomes Of Native Speakers Of Chinese Dialects, Lusa Lo, Nicole Lavan, Faye Karp, Rosann Tung

Gastón Institute Publications

In November 2002, the voters of Massachusetts approved Referendum Question 2. This referendum spelled an end to Transitional Bilingual Education (TBE) as the primary program available for children requiring language support in Massachusetts. In its place came a radically different policy called Sheltered English Immersion (SEI). Unlike TBE, which relies on the English learners’ own language to facilitate the learning of academic subjects as they master English, SEI programs rely on the use of simple English in the classroom to impart academic content; teachers use students’ native language only to assist them in completing tasks or to answer a question. …

Mr. Chipping And Mr. Hundert: Manliness, Media, And The Classical Education, Emily A. Mcdermott

Classics Faculty Publication Series

James Hilton’s genial portrayal of a Latin master in a turn-of-the-century British public school, Goodbye, Mr. Chips, was published as a magazine story in England in 1933, in book form in America a year later; it has inspired two film versions, one in 1939, one in 1969, and a full-length Masterpiece Theatre production for television in 2002. In 1994, Ethan Canin published his short story, “The Palace Thief,” presenting the unique tribulations of an ancient history teacher at an elite Virginia prep school; it was made into the 2002 film, The Emperor’s Club. Both stories are predicated on …

English Learners In Boston Public Schools: Enrollment, Engagement And Academic Outcomes, Ay2003-Ay2006 Final Report, Rosann Tung, Miren Uriarte, Virginia Diez, Nicole Lavan, Nicole Agusti, Faye Karp, Tatjana Meschede

Gastón Institute Publications

In 2002, Massachusetts voters approved a referendum against the continuance of Transitional Bilingual Education (TBE) as a method of instruction for English language learners. The study undertaken by the Mauricio Gaston Institute at UMass Boston in collaboration with the Center for Collaborative Education in Boston finds that, in the three years following the implementation of Question 2 in the Boston Public Schools, the identification of students of limited English proficiency declined as did the enrollment in programs for English; the enrollment of English Learners in substantially separate Special Education programs more than doubled; and service options for English Learners narrowed. …

Democratic Engagement White Paper, John Saltmarsh, Matthew Hartley, Patti Clayton

New England Resource Center for Higher Education Publications

Participants at a recent Wingspread conference on civic engagement in higher education concluded that while the movement has created some change, it has also plateaued and requires a more comprehensive effort to ensure lasting commitment and institutional capacity. For the participants at Wingspread, and for others involved in civic engagement in higher education, the time has come for “calling the question” of whether engagement will be viewed as a core value of the university of the 21st century – as centrally important to the civic mission of higher education and to generating and transmitting new knowledge. The concern is that …

Asca Code Of Ethics And The Relevance Of Eastern Ethical Theories, Amy Cook, Rick Houser

Counseling and School Psychology Faculty Publication Series

As schools become increasingly diverse through immigration and growth of minority groups, it is important that school counselors incorporate culturally sensitive ethical decision-making in their practice. The use of Western ethical theories in the application of professional codes of ethics provides a specific perspective in ethical decision- making, but may not provide school counselors with a broad cultural perspective. We discuss the use of Eastern theories of ethics (Taoism and Hinduism) and their relevance to the ASCA Ethical Standards for School Counselors to inform school counselors’ work with Asian immigrant students.

How Service Learning Addresses The Mental Health Needs Of Students In Urban School, Felicia Wilczenski, Amy Cook

Counseling and School Psychology Faculty Publication Series

Service learning promotes social-emotional and academic development through active engagement in community activities. It empowers students to think beyond themselves and to develop a commitment to serve others. In so doing, service learning builds connections with school and community that are critically important in urban settings. This paper links key components of effective mental health programs in urban schools with service learning.

Asca Code Of Ethics And The Relevance Of Eastern Ethical Theories, Amy Cook, Rick Houser

Amy Cook

As schools become increasingly diverse through immigration and growth of minority groups, it is important that school counselors incorporate culturally sensitive ethical decision-making in their practice. The use of Western ethical theories in the application of professional codes of ethics provides a specific perspective in ethical decision- making, but may not provide school counselors with a broad cultural perspective. We discuss the use of Eastern theories of ethics (Taoism and Hinduism) and their relevance to the ASCA Ethical Standards for School Counselors to inform school counselors’ work with Asian immigrant students.

How Service Learning Addresses The Mental Health Needs Of Students In Urban School, Felicia Wilczenski, Amy Cook

Amy Cook

Service learning promotes social-emotional and academic development through active engagement in community activities. It empowers students to think beyond themselves and to develop a commitment to serve others. In so doing, service learning builds connections with school and community that are critically important in urban settings. This paper links key components of effective mental health programs in urban schools with service learning.

Data Note: Postsecondary Education And Employment Outcomes For Youth With Intellectual Disabilities, Alberto Migliore, John Butterworth

Data Note Series, Institute for Community Inclusion

Completion of postsecondary education is commonly associated with better employment outcomes for the general population. There is increasing interest in postsecondary education as an opportunity for individuals with intellectual disabilities (ID). One role that vocational rehabilitation (VR) serves is to support postsecondary education in accordance with their Individualized Plan for Employment (IPE).