Understanding Instructional Leadership: Perceptions Of Elementary Principals, Georgia M. Powell

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With a proverbial finger pointing to principals as the school leaders responsible for overall student success, there is some increase in the accountability measures leadership provides. There is then more emphasis placed on principals’ capacity to take charge of the teaching and learning processes at the school level. The practices associated with the planning and guiding of the learning within schools is classified as instructional leadership. As part of their work. Principals are expected to be instructional leaders. This study explores how elementary principals in Ontario schools approach instructional leadership work especially since there is much ambiguity that exists about …

Goals Of Family Caregivers Of Persons With Dementia Across The Caregiving Career, Shalane R. Basque

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Understanding goals of family caregivers of persons with dementia is critical to provide effective education and support. However, there is little understanding about family caregivers’ goals. This study investigated goals set by family caregivers prior to an education and training program and whether their goals varied across the caregiving career. Phases of the caregiving career were measured by relationship identity; the extent to which participants viewed their relationship in terms of familial and caregiver roles. Conventional content analysis on goals of 30 family caregivers yielded five categories which varied by relationship identity. Enhancing relationships reflected goals for the familial role …

Pedagogies Of Possibilities: (Re)Designing Teacher Professional Learning To Support The Use Of Digital Technologies In Multimodal Pedagogies, Lori Mckee

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Digital technologies have the potential to expand communication opportunities (Walsh, 2011), but challenges exist in including these technologies in early literacy instruction (Flewitt, Messer, & Kucirkova, 2015). The literature explains that teachers identify a need for support in using digital technologies in their teaching (e.g., Hill, 2010) and professional learning activities are herein key. Still, the research offers differing advice about the formats these activities should take and the types of literacy digital technologies can support. This exploratory multiple-case study was designed to create teacher professional learning (TPL) opportunities to support early primary teachers (kindergarten-Grade 2) in creating and enacting …

How And Why Do Superintendents Build And Maintain Trust With School Principals: Exploring The Highly Complex Nature Of Relationships Between Leaders Within A School District, Celine Bourbonnais-Macdonald

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As society increases its expectations of education systems, school leaders are required to adapt their leadership practices to meet these demands. The province of Ontario has focused on establishing a framework for its educational leaders, The Ontario Leadership Framework (Institute for Education Leadership, 2013) to help communicate and support a coherent leadership structure in its public schools. For school leaders to be able to meet the provincial expectations, they need to be supported at the district level by superintendents who build and maintain strong relationships based on trust so that the school leaders can maximize change to educator practice, and …

The Doubleness Of International Double Degree Programs At Ontario Universities: Challenges And Prospects For Global Citizenship Education, Desire B. Yamutuale

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The Doubleness of International Double Degree Programs at Ontario Universities: Challenges and Prospects for Global Citizenship Education

This research explores transatlantic partnerships in higher education, specifically the international double degree programs (IDDPs) as strategic venues for fostering global citizenship at Ontario Universities. In fact, the advent of internationalization of higher education has compelled universities to connect with others around the world in the pursuit of world class status to remain competitive in attracting funds, academic talents and international students. IDDPs are partnerships between two or more universities located in different countries that allow for student mobility and academic collaboration. Students …

Emerging Leadership Practices For The Implementation Of Professional Practice Standards, Georgia Lampracos-Gionnas

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Abstract

This qualitative exploratory case study, situated in a Canadian community college, was designed to characterize the leadership practices that have emerged during the implementation of national curriculum standards in a Denturism program. The program has recently adopted the curriculum standards outlined in the National Competency Profile for Denturists (NCPD). This research focused on the implementation of the NCPD standards in the program, with special emphasis on the field placement course. The purpose was to investigate the organizational structures that support the implementation of the NCPD standards, as well as the leadership practices that have emerged, as different stakeholders collaborate …

Language Learner Autonomy In Ontario's Esl Context, Alireza Mousavi Arfae

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Since its emergence in the early 1980’s, the notion of learner autonomy has not only become a buzzword in second language education literature but a revolutionary phenomenon affecting teaching/learning approaches across the world. A great number of countries have adopted measures to promote learner autonomy in their language schools. In Europe, for instance, the Council of Europe developed the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) and the European Language Portfolio (ELP) with the explicit goal of developing language learner autonomy (Little, 2007). In Canada, following the introduction of Manitoba Collaborative Language Portfolio Assessment (CLPA), very recently Portfolio-Based Language …

Nursing Practice During A Mission In Nepal: Ethics And Leadership, Lorena M. Bonilla

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The ability of nurses to reflect or critically examine the impact of professional standards of practice, legal guidelines, and ethical frameworks that influence and guide their practice is essential to help patients achieve quality of life and wellness. Regardless of the location and setting where nursing takes place, contextual factors such as the benefits and potential harm resulting from the care provided, availability of resources, the nurse’s scope of practice, and evidence-based practice guidelines, all affect a nurse’s ability to practice in a safe, ethical, competent, caring, and compassionate manner.

Using an exploratory case study to investigate nurses’ (n=9) view …

Influence Of Leadership Approaches On Intrinsic Motivation Of Career Professionals In Ontario Non-Profit Employment Agencies: An Exploratory Case Study, Mohammad Habib Ullah

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This exploratory case study (Yin, 2009) investigated those leadership approaches that are used by mid-level managers of seven non-profit employment agencies in Ontario, Canada, to support the intrinsic motivation of seven career professionals who work with them. Unlike profit-earning organizations, career professionals of non-profit employment agencies in Ontario do not get any additional financial incentives for exceeding their targets of helping job seekers find sustainable employment. The research used a transformative learning theory lens (Mezirow, 1991), and also an Interpretivist framework (Merriam, 1998) to understand the data. This study also sought to find what motivates career professionals to reach and …

Understanding Student And Faculty Perceptions Of The Accommodation And Support Procedures For Students With Ld In Ontario Universities: A Mixed Methods Approach, Sarah Copfer Terreberry

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With recent advances in disability policies, practices, and inclusive education mandates, students with learning disabilities (LD) are choosing to attend higher education at a rate that is greater than ever before. Despite these positive advances, however, the transition from secondary to higher education and the adjustment to post-secondary environments for students with LD continues to present a number of unique academic, social, and emotional challenges for this population, especially as this relates to obtaining access to accommodation and support for their learning needs. This study investigated how the needs of students with learning disabilities (LD) are currently being met at …

Undergraduate Nurse Educators’ Perceived Structural Empowerment, Self-Efficacy For Teaching, And Perceptions Of Uncivil Classroom Behaviours In Academic Settings, Molly A. Hunter

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Background: This study examined the relationship among structural empowerment in academia, nurse educators’ self-efficacy for teaching, and their perceptions of the types and frequencies of uncivil classroom behaviours.

Methods: 56 participants, registered with the College of Nurses of Ontario (CNO), responded to a mail-out survey package containing four tools corresponding to each study variable. The analysis includes study descriptives, ANOVA analyses, correlations of total and subscales, and mediation analyses of the major study variables.

Results: A moderate level of structural empowerment and a high level of self-efficacy for teaching was found within the study. A significant indirect relationship was seen …

Expanding The Concept Of ‘Care’: A Narrative Study Exploring Lessons From End-Of-Life Patients To Inform ‘Medical Assistance In Dying’ Curriculum In Canada, Jill Dombroski

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This research primarily investigates what we can learn from patient experiences that can help inform the expected curricula that will be developed in response to the new Canadian legislation regarding Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID). This is a compelling area of research because of the rapidly evolving attitudes in the general population — largely driven by terminally ill patients asserting their legal rights over their bodies and the decision to put an end to their lives as a consequence of the illness they face. The issue of medical assistance in dying has been patient initiated and patient driven. Through the …

Perspectives Of Organizational Change Initiatives And Culture In A University’S Department, Kristen K. Boujos

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The current state of contemporary higher education institutions reveals challenges such as changing enrolment patterns (Association of American Colleges and Universities [AACU], 2002; Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada [AUCC], 2007; Levac & Newman, 2009), greater calls for accountability (AACU, 2002; Usher, 2015) and decreased public funding (AACU, 2002; Charbonneau, 2013; Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations [OCUFA], 2016). In addition to the external challenges of the higher education landscape, institutions are confronted with intersecting organizational issues such as the need for increasing productivity, improving communication processes, and motivating workforces (Jackson, 2010). These challenges require action, which often make …

Leadership Strategies For Adapting To Changes In Ontario Colleges: Tensions, Dilemmas, And Opportunities For Continuing Education Deans/Administrative Leaders, Susan C. Cluett

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This exploratory case study explores unique leadership challenges facing Ontario college Continuing Education leaders as they navigate institutional responses to contemporary changes in the higher education landscape. Nine Ontario college deans/administrative leaders participated in semi-structured interviews that were analyzed using a modified version of constant comparative analysis. Adopting the theoretical perspectives of sensemaking and identity from an Interpretive stance, the analysis leads to the presentation of a conceptual model that represents the interpretation of these leaders’ experiences.

The conceptual model that emerged from this study adopts the position that sensemaking resolves identity ambiguities and is triggered by leadership challenges. These …

Helpers And Heroes, Hurdles And Highs: A Humanistic Autoethnographical Reflection On Working Class Student Experiences, Willey A. B. Dow

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This research sought to answer the question of what helps working class university students at risk of withdrawal graduate from their program. An autoethnographic method was employed to systematically analyze my story, one of being a working class person navigating the higher educational system, compare the results to existing psychological research, and generate new themes, and ideas in the hope of ameliorating the experience, and increasing the likelihood of success for others. Themes, conclusions and implications for students were presented.

From The Igloo To The School, Jessica Sw Ford

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Abstract

Ten Inuit Elders currently living in Qamani’tuaq, Nunavut who were born and raised on the Land who then were relocated from the Land to the fixed Community of Qamani’tuaq shared some of their Learning experiences and Stories on the ways in which they acquired Inuit Knowledge. I am originally from the Community of Qamani’tuaq, and spent some of my Childhood there, but have not lived there for many years. I have extended Family members who still live in the Community.

For each of the interviews, I began with three research questions: 1) what are the customary Inuit practices of …

Examining The Effects Of The Positive Child Care Program In Early Childhood Education Environments: A Randomized Control Trial, Shawna L. Lee

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While there are a variety of programs and techniques that have been developed to support and address challenges with children’s behaviour in early learning and care settings, few studies have focused on the effectiveness and implementation of such approaches with fidelity. This study examines The Positive Child Care Program (PCCP) in order to inform program development. Participants in this study included 96 Early Childhood Educators and 12 Directors from 12 child care centres in Alberta, Canada. Findings indicate that PCCP has the potential to dramatically improve quality social and emotional experiences for both children and adults in early learning environments. …

Investigating The Transnational Identities Of Filipina/O/X Youth In Toronto Urban High Schools: A Critical Ethnographic Study Of The Impact Of Canada’S Live-In/Caregiver Program, Jessica Ellen Ticar

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This dissertation investigates the impact of transnational family separation and reunification through Canada’s Live-in/Caregiver Program (L/CP) on the educational experiences of Filipina/o/x newcomer youth in Toronto urban high schools. I draw on theories of identity and belonging, intersectionality, and postcolonial and transnational feminism to understand the experiences of Filipina/o/x youth. This is in relation to the migration trajectories of their mothers and the impact that these have had on their identity and belonging, as well as their experiences of schooling in Canada. Utilizing a critical and performance ethnographic approach, the youth engaged in oral history and memory through the use …

A Case Study Of New Media Literacies In An English Language Learning Program, Yifei Hu

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This case study was conducted in a four-week winter program of an English language center affiliated to a university that is situated in a city in Ontario. Underpinned by theories on new media literacies, actor-network theory, and curriculum, the thesis examines human and nonhuman actors that enabled and constrained students’ new media literacies practices in the English language learning program. Despite the fact that there are emergent studies on new media literacies, there is scarce literature on human and nonhuman actors that influence students’ new media literacies practices. In this study, sources of data included curricular documents, students’ artifacts, classroom …

Remembrance As Presence: Promoting Learning From Difficult Knowledge At The Canadian Museum For Human Rights, Kelsey Perreault

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This thesis explores the relationship between memorial museums and the Canadian Museum for Human Rights (CMHR), Winnipeg. Although the CMHR self-defines as an idea museum, using theories of remembrance, commemorative museum pedagogy, memory, and difficult knowledge, the CMHR is also easily situated in the growing global network of memorial museums. Angela Failler's theory of consolatory hope and my own theory of past-future dissonance suggest that there are several reasons the CMHR has not fulfilled its intended mandate of advocating for human rights in the present. Through a compare and contrast approach, this paper argues that the CMHR should look to …

The Effects Of Reading Bilingual Books On Vocabulary Learning, Zhiying Zhang

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This paper focuses on the effects of reading bilingual books on vocabulary learning. Eighty-three English as Foreign Language (EFL) learners in China read different versions of the same text: English-only text, English text with target words glossed, English version text followed by the Chinese version, and Chinese version text followed by the English version. A pretest, immediate posttest, and delayed posttest were created to measure the incidental learning of unknown vocabulary. The findings show: (a) All four groups made significant gains in lexical knowledge through completing the treatments, (b) Those who read glossed text and bilingual text had significantly durable …

How Does Mode Of Input Affect Incidental Vocabulary Learning, Yanxue Feng

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This study investigated the extent to which different modes of L2 input contributed to vocabulary learning. One hundred and seventy-three EFL university students in China were randomly assigned to six groups, each of which was presented with the same full-length documentary in different modes: reading the transcript, listening, viewing with captions (VC), viewing without captions (VNC); silent viewing with captions (SVC), and a non-treatment control mode. A checklist-test and a multiple-choice test were designed to measure knowledge of the target words. Participants also completed the Vocabulary Levels Test (Webb, Sasao, & Ballance, 2017). The results showed that L2 incidental vocabulary …

A Case Study Of Literacy Curricula In A Canadian Offshore School In China, Wanjing Li

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This single case study is embedded in a multiple case study conducted in Canadian offshore schools in China. In response to the scant literature on literacy curriculum in transnational education contexts, particularly in secondary schools, this study reports findings regarding literacy curricula implementation in a secondary Sino-Canadian school.

The theoretical tools of the study include theories on curriculum, multiliteracies, and multimodality. Data presented in this paper emerges from observations of 46 periods of Mandarin and English literacy classes, interviews with two Chinese and two foreign literacy teachers regarding curricula actualization, and related curriculum documents.

Findings relate how Chinese and Canadian …

Incidental Vocabulary Learning Through Listening To Songs, Niousha Maneshi

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Use of songs as the vehicle for language teaching/learning has become common practice (Medina, 1993). Nevertheless, there are no experimental studies examining the potential learning gains from songs. The present study investigates incidental learning of three vocabulary knowledge dimensions (spoken-form recognition, form-meaning connection, and collocation recognition) through listening to two songs. The effects of repeated listening to a single song (1,3, or 5 times) and the relationship between frequency of exposure to the targeted vocabulary items and learning gains were also explored. Two multiple choice tests (one for each song) that each measured the different dimensions of vocabulary knowledge were …

The Technical Vocabulary Of Newspapers, Jiahui Zhu

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A seven-million-word newspaper corpus that was made up of approximately 7,600 newspaper articles posted to The New York Times website between June, 2015 and October, 2016 was created and analyzed to identify the technical vocabulary of a newspaper and determine its lexical coverage. The results showed that there were 405 technical words of the newspaper as a whole that accounted for 9.76% of the running words in the NYT corpus, and an average of 748 technical words of each newspaper section with an average lexical coverage of 23.82%. Identifying the technical vocabulary of a newspaper is valuable for language learners, …

How Do Teachers Challenge Neoliberalism Through Critical Pedagogy Within And Outside Of The Classroom?, Rezvan Shahsavari-Googhari

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This thesis uses the qualitative case study approach to investigate current strategies and skills four Ontario public secondary school teachers apply both within and outside of the classroom to enhance students’ critical consciousness. The focus is on teachers’ pedagogical work in the era of neoliberal restructuring in order to provide a rich account of how neoliberalism challenges and affects their teaching. Existing literature shows a crisis of identity and political agency among youth in many Western societies, characterized by individuals’ inability to think critically about social, political and economic issues, which is rooted in neoliberal education reforms. Adopting a critical …

Re-Conceptualizing The Nature Of Resources In Multimodal Literacy: The Case Of Young Children’S Meaning Making In An Intergenerational Art Class, Zhen Lin

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This case study was embedded in a SSHRC project called: Learning together: A multiple case study of intergenerational multimodal curricula, led by Dr. Rachel Heydon. The study specifically focused on resources employed by young children in their processes of meaning making within intergenerational art classes. Research questions concerned: 1) what resources were available for young children’s meaning making within the intergenerational art classes? 2) what resources were chosen and used by young children in their processes of meaning making and how? and 3) how did different resources interact with each other in multimodal ensembles? The theoretical tool of the …

A Mixed Methods Exploration Of Benefits For Youth Mentors In An Indigenous High School Peer Mentoring Program, Melissa Coyne-Foresi

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This mixed methods case study investigated the benefits of serving as a youth mentor to younger peers as part of the Fourth R: Uniting Our Nations Peer Mentoring Program. Data were collected from 11 youth mentors via interviews and returned to them for interpretation and meaning-making through a statement sorting activity as part of a larger concept mapping procedure. The concept mapping was created through Concept Systems, and traditional thematic analysis of the data were conducted with Dedoose. The concept mapping revealed three themes: 1) Cultural Connections, 2) Benefits to Self, and 3) Relationships with Family and Friends. As part …

A Case Study Of Chinese Teachers’ Experiences Of Multiliteracies And Multimodality In Teaching Young Students Chinese Literacy In Canada, Xiaotong Xing

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Existing literature regarding teachers’ practices of multiliteracies has proven that multiliteracies enables teachers to deal with diversity and build creative teaching practices in classrooms. However, few studies have shed light on Chinese teachers’ understanding and practices of multiliteracies. This qualitative case study investigated and displayed two Chinese teachers’ diverse perceptions and practices of implementing multiliteracies in teaching young children Chinese literacy in Canada. A constant comparison approach was adopted to analyze the data collected from interviews, curriculum materials and reflective writings from two Chinese teachers. The findings show that these Chinese teachers have different perceptions regarding multiliteracies, and create innovative …

How Do Educational Leaders In Small, Fragile, And Developing Countries Translate Their Understandings Of Student Learning And Achievement Into Leadership Practices? A Case-Study About Leadership In Haïtian Urban Schools, Carolyne Pierre Marie Verret

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Haïti is unique in many respects; full of contradictions and paradoxes. While beautiful in many regards, it is fraught with issues: political, economic, societal, environmental, cultural, health-related, and educational. The latter stands out, however, as education affects the quality of the country’s human capital, determining the quality of life of its citizens. Therefore, having competent people in leadership positions is critical especially within schools where they can impact students’ learning, development, and achievement (SL/A).

Aiming to describe the state of educational leadership in Haïtian schools to inform policy-makers of the lived-experiences of educational leaders (ELs), the objectives of this study …