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What Common Elementary Practices Impact Teacher Efficacy?, Staci Souhan
What Common Elementary Practices Impact Teacher Efficacy?, Staci Souhan
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations
Efficacy and its impact on student outcomes have often been researched. Specific practices within an elementary setting that impact teacher efficacy has not been widely researched. This research focused on gathering the perceptions of elementary teachers regarding which experiences had impacted their feelings of efficacy positively or negatively. This qualitative research followed a grounded theory process. Data collection methods involved gathering data from an email survey and following up with a focus group which allowed triangulation of data and findings. Participants from a midwestern suburban high-performing elementary school were selected for this research based on the assumption that high-performing schools …
How To Create A Successful Learning Environment For Students With Challenging Behaviors, Kristin Otto
How To Create A Successful Learning Environment For Students With Challenging Behaviors, Kristin Otto
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
As an experienced special education teacher working with a range of school districts, I have observed the need for further training on how to manage challenging behaviors within our schools. Though there are many researched based strategies available for helping educators manage challenging behaviors, there are very few trainings that guide educators to program for students with challenging behaviors. With teacher shortages at all-time high in the state of Minnesota, and schools working hard to provide inclusive classrooms, the need for further training for educators appears to be at the forefront. This project on: How to create successful learning environments …
Training English Language Teachers To Help Adult General English Students With Complex Noun Phrases For Business Writing, Christina Cipriani
Training English Language Teachers To Help Adult General English Students With Complex Noun Phrases For Business Writing, Christina Cipriani
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
An overwhelming number of English Learners (ELs) are motivated to learn English because it can act as a tool to help them achieve career success. However, textbooks, which form the backbone of many General English (GE) courses, do not provide enough information in a number of areas related to success at work. Notably, few textbooks offer models for the language needed in job searching, including complex noun phrases. Since textbooks are not providing this material, teachers have to fill that gap themselves. In order to help teachers fulfill this task, my capstone project investigates the following research question: “How can …
Trauma-Informed Mathematics: Using Portfolios To Promote Reflection And Resilience, Ethan Somes
Trauma-Informed Mathematics: Using Portfolios To Promote Reflection And Resilience, Ethan Somes
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Mathematics has a reputation for being abstract, complex, and for many, incomprehensible. In schools, it is common for students to dislike math and to feel self-conscious about their abilities or performance. The typical structure of math assessments, namely tests that are time constricted and highly stressful, creates a cycle of poor performance, disengagement, and high anxiety. This suggests that a new way of assessing students is needed, one that shows the fuller picture of students' math capabilities. This leads to the research question: how can the use of portfolios in math class help students begin to heal from trauma or …
Citizen Science As Experiential Education In The Modern Classroom, Peter Swan
Citizen Science As Experiential Education In The Modern Classroom, Peter Swan
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Secondary education has grown increasingly dependent on delivering instruction and materials via mobile devices and computers in the 21st century. Research has long shown the effectiveness of “student-centered”, experiential and “place based” learning in the classroom. Citizen science initiatives have been demonstrated to be meaningful ways to teach the nature - and practice - of scientific inquiry. This paper explores the current trends in secondary science education in light of recent societal transformations and investigates the body of literature regarding environmental, outdoor and experiential education. The project then proposes a solution to integrate experiential, citizen science into a modern, digital …
Effective Teacher-Parent Communication Tools To Empower Families To Be Active In Their Children’S Learning, Ellis Richardson
Effective Teacher-Parent Communication Tools To Empower Families To Be Active In Their Children’S Learning, Ellis Richardson
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Creating an environment that is conducive for learning is an essential component of education. In search of ways to achieve this goal through family engagement the question was posed, How can educators effectively communicate with families to empower them to take an active role in their child’s learning? Research has demonstrated that there is a link between student success and teacher-parent partnerships through one way and two way communication methods. The project involved creating a set of resources for educators to foster and maintain teacher-parent partnerships with the goal being student success. The resources are accompanied by a professional development …
Developing Effective Resources To Maintain The Target Language Of A Dual Language Immersion Program, Sofia Henao
Developing Effective Resources To Maintain The Target Language Of A Dual Language Immersion Program, Sofia Henao
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Dual Language Immersion programs (DLIPs) have been around for more than 60 years in the United States. DLIPs focus on teaching students subject matter in a second language. This project connects the topics and goals of dual language immersion education to a website that can be used as a source of practice for students that are no longer directly in an immersion program by investigating the question, “What supports can teachers put in place that students can use when they are not directly in a dual language immersion program?” The research intends to illustrate the importance of continued practice and …
Students With Interrupted Formal Education: A Toolbox For Instruction, Mary Palmer
Students With Interrupted Formal Education: A Toolbox For Instruction, Mary Palmer
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
The research question addressed in this capstone project is: What are best practices for schools to support students with interrupted schooling? This paper and three-session professional development series showcase ways that content teachers can help facilitate learning for a growing multilingual learner population, students with limited formal education (SIFE). Within the professional development series, there will be three strategies that are highlighted including: Culturally Relevant Teaching, using aspects and background knowledge from a student’s own lived experience to facilitate knowledge acquisition; Mutually Adaptive Learning Paradigm which bridges the skills that students with limited formal education come to classrooms with to …
How Adverse Childhood Experiences Affect Children In School And What Protective Factors Can Teachers Provide For These Students, Michelle Moorer
How Adverse Childhood Experiences Affect Children In School And What Protective Factors Can Teachers Provide For These Students, Michelle Moorer
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
The research question addressed in this Capstone Project is: How do adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) affect children in school and what protective factors can teachers provide for these students? I will start by giving an overview of ACEs, ACEs impact on adulthood, trauma and toxic stress, trauma informed practices, and finally discuss protective factors for children with ACEs. Research shows that having exposure to childhood adversity is connected to negative health and life outcomes. Protective factors against ACEs can be a buffer against the negative effects of ACEs. These factors can be provided in different contexts, for example in relationships, …
An Intervention To Support Comprehension During Independent Reading Time, Jacob Klis
An Intervention To Support Comprehension During Independent Reading Time, Jacob Klis
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
The question that guided this project was: How can using an intervention based on a comprehension strategy increase student reading interest? This question guided research on digital and print texts, student reading interest, and a brief history of balanced literacy. Many schools use a mix of digital and print resources and students need to be prepared to understand each. Using independent reading time at school has shown to give students greater success in literacy and other areas of school. It has shown that dedicated independent reading time is important at school. The goal of this project was to make independent …
Cultivating Student Agency Through The Use Of Authentic Science Practices, John Haug
Cultivating Student Agency Through The Use Of Authentic Science Practices, John Haug
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
This paper examines a needed shift in teaching secondary science students as more states and school districts adopt the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) for assessing student skills and knowledge. The eight practices identified by the NGSS offer an opportunity to incorporate authentic science instruction into the classroom. Research supports that students who gain confidence in authentic science practices have a broader and deeper understanding of the nature of science. Research also supports that students who improve authentic practices are more likely to trust scientific findings and be more apt to take action on social and environmental issues. This shift …
Facilitating The Success Of Students Transitioning Between Different Methods Of Instruction, Amanda Froberg
Facilitating The Success Of Students Transitioning Between Different Methods Of Instruction, Amanda Froberg
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
The research question being addressed in this project is, how do teachers successfully facilitate the movement back and forth between different methods of instruction for students? This question is answered in the paper and then the project. The project consists of a professional development workshop that is five 120 minute sessions. The first chapter introduces the topic with discussing teaching experiences before the pandemic, COVID-19 and distance learning, and teaching experiences after the pandemic. The second chapter is the literature review that looks at defining student success (academic, social, and mental/emotional), distance learning and COVID-19, and transitions in method of …
Unlocking Math Minds: Using Inquiry-Based Instruction To Increase Student Engagement And Learning In A Third Grade Classroom, Eric Swendseid
Unlocking Math Minds: Using Inquiry-Based Instruction To Increase Student Engagement And Learning In A Third Grade Classroom, Eric Swendseid
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
This paper and supporting website include research and strategies to answer the research question, How can the implementation of inquiry-based math instruction increase student engagement and learning success in a third grade classroom? Inquiry-based learning is a process where the students are involved in their learning. The classroom is student-centered, not teacher-centered. Using the student-centered or inquiry-based approach, students do not learn through transmission. Instead, they collect information and synthesize the information they find through critical thinking skills. The learning process is considered to be higher-order learning. The research presented in this paper focuses on guided inquiry within a mathematics …
Best Practices Using Pair Work For English Language Learners, Olivia Meyer
Best Practices Using Pair Work For English Language Learners, Olivia Meyer
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
This project examined English Language (EL) learners and pair work in order to improve English skills and proficiency, answering the question: What are the best ways to use pair work to assist EL students in making English proficiency gains? There are many sources that show that collaboration and in particular, pair collaboration, supports language learning for all ages. One reason for this may be because language learning is most successful when there is plenty of feedback and interaction, creating plenty of opportunities to practice language skills. The project led to creation of a professional development course for educators that teaches …
Supporting Multilingual Learners In The Content Classroom Through Culturally And Linguistically Responsive Teaching Practices, Karen Martinez Tinajero
Supporting Multilingual Learners In The Content Classroom Through Culturally And Linguistically Responsive Teaching Practices, Karen Martinez Tinajero
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Culturally and linguistically responsive teaching practices have been demonstrated to yield positive learning outcomes for multilingual learners. The curriculum designed for this project focuses on making direct use of the culturally and linguistically responsive guidelines, frameworks, and strategies as proposed by Zaretta Hammond, Sharroky Hollie, Sydney Snyder, and Diane Staehr Fenner in a secondary level history classroom for the purpose of maximizing learning opportunities for multilingual learners. This project involved creating a dynamic curriculum complete with teacher considerations to transform content learning through cultural and linguistic responsiveness. The curriculum will primarily be used in secondary social studies classrooms for multilingual …
Renewable Energy Education At Residential Environmental Learning Centers, Kim Corson
Renewable Energy Education At Residential Environmental Learning Centers, Kim Corson
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
This capstone project sought to answer the question, what are effective methods for teaching middle school students about renewable energy at residential environmental learning centers? Research shows that participation in a residential learning experience helps students retain knowledge and learn in a more hands-on and real world context. However, research connecting a residential environmental learning experience and renewable energy education is limited. This project involved creating a curriculum that utilizes effective methods for teaching and learning about renewable energy with the goal to help grow students energy and environmental literacy. The lesson targets middle school students but can be adapted …
Supporting Healthy Identity Development Using Text Selection And Instructional Activities In Secondary Language Arts Classes, Carla Beuning Obleman
Supporting Healthy Identity Development Using Text Selection And Instructional Activities In Secondary Language Arts Classes, Carla Beuning Obleman
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Adolescence is a critical juncture in the process of identity development and has implications for secondary-level students. This project connects the topics of adolescent identity development with literature instruction at the secondary level, investigating the question “How can secondary language arts teachers support healthy identity development in adolescent learners using text selection and instructional activities?” A literature review provides a theoretical basis of adolescent identity development, including foundational theories such as Erik Erikson’s psychosocial development theory and contemporary ideas like Kimberlé Crenshaw’s work on intersectionality. The review provides a framework for understanding how text selection and instructional activities affect adolescent …
How Affinity Groups Can Help With Bipoc Teacher Support, Retention, And Growth, Emily Dech
How Affinity Groups Can Help With Bipoc Teacher Support, Retention, And Growth, Emily Dech
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Our classrooms have become increasingly diverse. Teachers of Color (TOC) make up about 20% of U.S. public school teachers while Students of Color represent about 52% of public school students. It becomes difficult to model affirmative acknowledgement of diversity in the classroom when most of the adults fit into the demographics of white, cisgender, middle class, and female. To help all students, but especially BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) students, we must first address the importance of Teachers of Color and the crucial need to support and retain them through having BIPOC affinity groups. This brings about the question: …
Developing An Outdoor Learning Area And Guidebook For The Elementary Grades, Jordyn Kern
Developing An Outdoor Learning Area And Guidebook For The Elementary Grades, Jordyn Kern
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Research has shown that outdoor education has major benefits for school-age children (Yildirim & Akamca, 2017). These benefits include increased academic success, better social-emotional development, better physical development, and better mental and physical health (Suttie, 2018). The guidebook designed for this project focuses on how to increase those five things in children across the country. The goal of the guidebook is to increase outdoor education within classrooms throughout the United States and eventually, the world. The guidebook is geared towards elementary school teachers but can be adapted to fit any grade, time frame, and experience level of the teacher. The …
History As A Catalyst For Effective Activism: A Project Based Curriculum, Seth Bobrow
History As A Catalyst For Effective Activism: A Project Based Curriculum, Seth Bobrow
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Many history classes lack ways to link content to actions or skills that students can use. At the same time research suggests that activist practices are skills that are underutilized in classrooms because teachers don’t have the resources or time to teach them. Therefore this project demonstrates how history can be used to teach effective activist practices. It identifies four elements of activism that improve efficacy. They include: selecting the government as a target, strategic use of framing, utilizing physical space in addition to digital space and participating in organizations characterized by strong structures. By combining the Case Study, Texts …
Employing Culturally Responsive Teaching Practices In English Language Arts Classrooms, Austin Niederkorn
Employing Culturally Responsive Teaching Practices In English Language Arts Classrooms, Austin Niederkorn
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Culturally responsive teaching (CRT) is a well renowned approach to teaching that connects students’ cultures, languages, and personal experiences to the curriculum they learn in school. CRT helps students access higher level learning while also promoting increased student achievement, a positive classroom environment, meaningful teacher-student relationships, and impactful connections with communities and families. All teachers can benefit from using CRT in their classrooms, yet English Language Arts (ELA) teachers have unique opportunities to use students’ cultural and linguistic backgrounds to shape their reading and writing instruction. Despite being widely praised, culturally responsive teaching is not often the focus of professional …
Empathy For Self And Others: An Sel Curriculum For A Catholic Middle School, Isabel Heins
Empathy For Self And Others: An Sel Curriculum For A Catholic Middle School, Isabel Heins
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
This project explores the importance of an easy to use social and emotional learning (SEL) curriculum that can be implemented immediately. While it is aimed specifically at a middle school audience in a Catholic school setting, it is intended for use in any advisory, homeroom, or unstructured time when teachers want to easily incorporate SEL activities. Focused on mental health and empathy, activities such as Role Playing, Naming Emotions, and many others are designed to be implemented with students right away. The goal of the curriculum is to serve as a resource for teachers as they begin teaching SEL skills …
Increasing Student Engagement Of English Learners In Synchronous Online Settings, Pachia Vang
Increasing Student Engagement Of English Learners In Synchronous Online Settings, Pachia Vang
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Increasing engagement has been an essential focal point in second language acquisition for English learners (ELs). However, further research is needed to comprehend precisely how to increase engagement of ELs during live video conferences, also known as synchronous online learning. This is especially prevalent after COVID-19 created a shift in learning, where K-12 teachers were forced to adjust their instruction to benefit from an online platform. Teachers and students had to use technology as a means of teaching and learning without proper planning for teaching online. The limited knowledge of how to instruct and engage English learners online during my …
Social Emotional Learning: A Professional Development Series For Teachers, Danielle Plumley
Social Emotional Learning: A Professional Development Series For Teachers, Danielle Plumley
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
In the past two years, we have experienced unprecedented times throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. As students were forced into distance learning, they were missing out on the opportunity to grow their social and emotional skills in person with their peers. This capstone paper and project seek to answer the question, “How can we as teachers incorporate social emotional learning on a regular basis to create meaningful progress for students?” As we return to regular in person learning, it is so important for teachers and students to focus on social and emotional learning. Although academics are what most people think of …
Using Video Games To Teach Social Studies, Model Careers, And Develop Environmental Identities Within Our Classrooms, Luke Stahlmann
Using Video Games To Teach Social Studies, Model Careers, And Develop Environmental Identities Within Our Classrooms, Luke Stahlmann
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Decades of research point towards great, but unfortunately untapped, potential video games provide classrooms for meaningful learning and enrichment. Despite a lot of academic thought being poured into the subject of video games’ educational value, we do not see them being used commonly within classrooms or even cohesively studied as different games are focused on and successes are measured in non uniform ways. The content created for this project focuses on taking much of the academic foundation or merit of learning through video games and advocates them to a general audience alongside modern games that exemplify learning principles covered. The …
A Sense Of Place In Environmental Education: A Forest Ecology Curriculum, Samantha Selter
A Sense Of Place In Environmental Education: A Forest Ecology Curriculum, Samantha Selter
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
This project discusses the definition of a sense of place as it pertains to environmental education to present the influence of people-to-place relationships in developing environmental stewardship and pro-environmental behavior. Researchers across the fields of geography, environmentalism, and psychology have long identified places as being important to how people see the world and how they act in different places. Fostering place attachment and place meaning within environmental curricula can advance environmental understanding and responsibility through the use of local ecology and problem solving of environmental issues. The curriculum unit within this project focuses on invasive species and uses this environmental …
Play-Based Learning For Academic, Social, And Emotional Growth In First Grade Students, Erin Everts Graves
Play-Based Learning For Academic, Social, And Emotional Growth In First Grade Students, Erin Everts Graves
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Research has shown that play-based learning is beneficial for student growth and development in academic, social, and emotional skills. The professional development course designed for this project focuses on implementing a play-based learning pedagogical approach in first grade classrooms, in order to strengthen student social and emotional skills and increase academic knowledge. Play-based learning has been widely used and studied in preschool and kindergarten classrooms, but research on play and implementation at the first grade level is limited. The project involved creating professional development sessions that engaged teachers in play while learning best practices for creating change in their classrooms. …
Implicit Racial Bias And Placement Processes In Education, Alyson Sartain
Implicit Racial Bias And Placement Processes In Education, Alyson Sartain
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
The awareness of implicit bias has grown significantly since 1977. Its subconscious and automatic processing effects are found to be significant factors in explicit action and attitudes in schools. There is an increased need for creating an equitable schooling experience for students in schools. Current literature suggests that there is a significance in teacher implicit racial bias in the classroom which leads to the inequity and disproportionality of exceptionality classes. A noted disproportionality in race for exceptionality classes in both Individuals with Disabilities Act and Every Student Succeeds Act urged the question: How can teachers’ recognition of their own implicit …
Relevant History: Using Historical Fiction To Make History Engaging, Kayleigh Maloney
Relevant History: Using Historical Fiction To Make History Engaging, Kayleigh Maloney
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
This project sought to research effective ways in which secondary school teachers can use historical fiction in a history setting in order to better engage their students. Works of historical fiction were found to be a useful tool for engagement and relevance to the class, as long as they are used in the proper context, with special attention given to reading strategies, accuracy of information within the texts, and the allowance of student choice throughout the class. The curriculum itself gives a pattern, or template, that teachers can use to fit their classroom needs. Students rotate between reading historical fiction, …
Influencing Middle School Students' Perspective Of Media Literacy, Ray Doss
Influencing Middle School Students' Perspective Of Media Literacy, Ray Doss
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
This project interrogates the influence middle school teachers have over media literacy in the classroom. It utilizes existing literature concerning media literacy and social studies curriculum. A curricular approach is offered to address media literacy in a middle school social studies classroom. By using this project, students will develop their understanding of media literacy and form the skills needed to navigate a media-saturated world.