Education Commons^™

Racial Justice And Black Lives In Research: Consider These Areas Of Inquiry, Doretha Walker, Amy Krenzer, Hila Berger, Michael A. Hunt

Black Lives Matter in Research

Developed by the Black Matter in Research Working Group 2021 -- Researchers, Ethics & IRB Professionals.

Interrogating Power Dynamics In Research: Why Black Voices Matter, Jason Williams

Black Lives Matter in Research

No abstract provided.

Three Decades Of Research: The Case For Comprehensive Sex Education, Eva Goldfarb, Lisa D. Lieberman

Department of Public Health Scholarship and Creative Works

Purpose

School-based sex education plays a vital role in the sexual health and well-being of young people. Little is known, however, about the effectiveness of efforts beyond pregnancy and sexually transmitted disease prevention. The authors conducted a systematic literature review of three decades of research on school-based programs to find evidence for the effectiveness of comprehensive sex education.

Methods

Researchers searched the ERIC, PsycINFO, and MEDLINE. The research team identified papers meeting the systematic literature review criteria. Of 8,058 relevant articles, 218 met specific review criteria. More than 80% focused solely on pregnancy and disease prevention and were excluded, leaving …

Three Decades Of Research: The Case For Comprehensive Sex Education, Eva Goldfarb, Lisa D. Lieberman

Department of Public Health Scholarship and Creative Works

Purpose

School-based sex education plays a vital role in the sexual health and well-being of young people. Little is known, however, about the effectiveness of efforts beyond pregnancy and sexually transmitted disease prevention. The authors conducted a systematic literature review of three decades of research on school-based programs to find evidence for the effectiveness of comprehensive sex education.

Methods

Researchers searched the ERIC, PsycINFO, and MEDLINE. The research team identified papers meeting the systematic literature review criteria. Of 8,058 relevant articles, 218 met specific review criteria. More than 80% focused solely on pregnancy and disease prevention and were excluded, leaving …

The Role Of Covariational Reasoning In Pre-Service Teachers’ Meanings For Quadratic And Exponential Relationships, Madhavi Vishnubhotla

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Researchers have indicated that students have difficulties recognizing quadratic and exponential change and do not maintain productive meanings for these relationships. Other researchers have documented that students are capable of developing productive meanings for mathematical ideas via covariational reasoning. This dissertation reports the results of an investigation into ways in which preservice teachers can leverage covariational reasoning to develop meanings for quadratic and exponential relationships. I collected data by engaging two preservice teachers in semi-structured clinical interviews and a semester long teaching experiment. My analyses reveal that whereas in the pre-interviews, the participants did not have meanings that supported differentiating …

A Community Of Learning In An Elementary School Mathematics Classroom, Megan Louise Roeder

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

The goal of this study was to investigate opportunities for cultivating a community of learning in an elementary school mathematics classroom using four guiding principles for productive disciplinary engagement. A community of learning involves teachers and students participating equally in negotiating, sharing, and producing knowledge as co-learners, coteachers, and co-collaborators in the classroom. Characteristics of a community of learning align with effective teaching and learning practices described by national governing bodies and researchers in the field of mathematics education. The essence of a community of learning is beneficial in an elementary mathematics classroom because it invokes deep learning about disciplinary …

You Don’T Know My Story : Engaging Black Parents With Culturally Responsive School Practices, Lachan V. Hannon

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Black parents have reported feeling alienated from their children’s schooling experiences, citing weak school communications, challenges with trust, and teachers’ misperceived values of parents (Brandon, Higgins, Pierce, Tandy, & Sileo, 2010). Drawing from the tenets of critical race theory of education (Ladson-Billings & Tate, 1995) and culturally responsive teaching (Ladson-Billings, 1994; Villegas & Lucas, 2002), the purpose of this study was to better understand the qualities within schools that parents experience as welcoming their participation and influencing their motivation to maintain involvement. By privileging the voices of nine Black parents using one-time, semi-structured interviews, this study began to define what …

Establishing And Promoting An Institutional Repository And Research Information Management System, Darren Sweeper, Karen Ramsden

Sprague Library Scholarship and Creative Works

The purpose of this paper is to share the experiences and to highlight lessons learned from the establishment of the institutional repository (IR) while collaborating in a state-wide initiative to showcase the scholarly output of New Jersey researchers.

A Community Of Practice Approach To Teacher Learning, Jayne L. Tanis

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Teacher effectiveness has been targeted by government agencies and educational think tanks for raising student achievement and providing equitable education for all. Exploring how teachers enacted their development of practice in a teacher-initiated learning community of practice to improve student achievement in mathematics exposed mediating factors responsible for teacher learning. This qualitative study drew upon Aristotle’s discussion of phronesis and Lave and Wenger’s (1991) concept of legitimate peripheral participation to interpret how artifacts produced within and across communities of practice reified the elements of collaborative teacher learning that lead to changes in instructional practice during a reform initiative. These findings …

Using Video To Reframe The Teacher Evaluation Process As A Professional Learning Experience : An Action Research Study, Andrew C. Matteo

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

The purpose of this action research study was to work with a group of teachers to refine an organizational routine dealing with teacher evaluation with the dual goals of (a) increasing the teachers’ sense of professionalism and improving the technical core of their work—instruction— and (b) moving toward a routine that the district will be able to use in the future. The research question that guided this work was, “How do we experience the organizational routine that I developed using video for teacher evaluation for improving teacher practice as compared to the existing teacher evaluation system, and how does our …

Grassroots Professional Learning : The Homegrown And Human Dimensions Of Teacher Learning, Heather A. Frank Matteo

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

This qualitative study was prompted by the current climate of teacher accountability and educational reform efforts focused on teacher quality and effectiveness in the U.S. Initiatives, at both the national and state levels, reflect top-down professional development policies that tend to prioritize one-size-fits-all approaches to teacher development and ultimately serve to deprofessionalize teachers. As a result, little attention has been paid to understanding teachers’ professional learning in a grassroots sense. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine how a group of elementary school teachers of literacy engaged collectively in grassroots professional learning in the context of top-down professional …

Video Case Materials And The Development Of Collective Professional Knowledge, Victoria D. Bonaccorso

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

The dynamic nature of teaching means that teachers are making in-the-moment decisions on a daily basis. Video case study professional development can be used as a way to provide teachers an opportunity to analyze real teaching scenarios to prepare to make these decisions in practice. While work has been done to reveal the effectiveness of using case studies as a teaching tool, there has not been research conducted to determine if video case studies can be used to foster the development of collective professional knowledge. This study utilizes a particular professional development model using video case studies grounded in the …

Preparing Preservice Teachers To Be Critical Literacy Educators : Co-Constructing An Early Childhood Critical Literacy Junk Art Club, Angela F. Pack

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

This qualitative practitioner action research study examines the process of a teacher educator’s attempt to prepare three preservice teachers to be critical literacy educators. Prior to the study, the teacher educator and the three preservice teachers took part in a critical literacy workshop where they unpacked their relationship with literacy and power. The three preservice teachers then worked together to co-construct a Junk Art Club with the teacher educator for kindergarten, first-, and second-graders. Through the co-planning and co-constructing of a Junk Art Club, the study sought to answer the following questions: What happens when I, an early childhood teacher …

The Social Capital In Teacher Leadership Activities, Kristen Trabona

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

This dissertation presents findings from a qualitative case study of two K-12 science teacher leader fellows involved in a corporate grant funded professional development program. I specifically examined how teacher leaders used social capital as they facilitated professional development in their schools. I explored the following question: How do teacher leadership activities facilitated by novice teacher leaders who participate in a grant funded teacher leadership professional development program rely on social capital to enact change? The following main themes emerged in the data: (a) intentionality plays a critical role in teacher leadership; (b) teacher leadership activities require an introspective lens; …

Teaching And Learning Of Fluid Mechanics, Ashwin Vaidya

Department of Mathematics Facuty Scholarship and Creative Works

Fluid mechanics occupies a privileged position in the sciences; it is taught in various science departments including physics, mathematics, environmental sciences and mechanical, chemical and civil engineering, with each highlighting a different aspect or interpretation of the foundation and applications of fluids. Doll’s fluid analogy [5] for this idea is especially relevant to this issue: “Emergence of creativity from complex flow of knowledge—example of Benard convection pattern as an analogy—dissipation or dispersal of knowledge (complex knowledge) results in emergent structures, i.e., creativity which in the context of education should be thought of as a unique way to arrange information so …

Their American Dream, Danne Davis

Department of Teaching and Learning Scholarship and Creative Works

Centuries before W.E.B. DuBois named the colorline—i.e., racism—as the problem of the 20th century, skin color stratification was a persistent phenomenon. In 1983 Black feminist, scholar, and Pulitzer Prize winning author Alice Walker termed “colorism” as “prejudicial or preferential treatment of same-race people based solely on their [skin] color”. Using the tools of genealogy, I conducted a critical family history of my parents, Lem and Mae’s, pursuit of their American Dream. Such exploration digs deep to decipher the nexuses of a family’s evolution. Dr. Maya Angelou routinely shared stories about her past to impart the importance of embracing one’s history. …

What If The Arts Were Taken Away?, Joseph S. Pizzo

New Jersey English Journal

The arts give clarity to their emotions, situations, questions, and lives. Students experiencing all the arts gain a comprehensive perspective. Lyndon B. Johnson observed: “(I)t is in our works of art that we reveal to ourselves and to others the inner vision which guides us as a nation.”

Speedball, Jeffrey Pflaum

New Jersey English Journal

The poem and photographs describe a scene where a teacher goes to the cafeteria to pick up his class. As he comes to their table, the teacher encounters a fight between two boys. After getting the situation under control, and settling down the children, they head back to the room. The teacher calms himself down when a second fight breaks out. He decides to let the boys fight and takes the class out of the room, "freezing" the boys." At the end he "holds on" to his desk to gain control of himself and return to the present moment.

Seventh Hour Poetry Class, Bill Meissner

New Jersey English Journal

No abstract provided.

The Pen Your Teacher Gave You, Bill Meissner

New Jersey English Journal

No abstract provided.

One Teacher's Personal Ten Commandments, Svea Barrett

New Jersey English Journal

No abstract provided.

Theme For English H: Identity Poems In A Multicultural English Class, Annie Yon

New Jersey English Journal

With many school districts nationwide experiencing rapid growth in the number of students of color, culturally diverse students, and students of low-income families, it is important for teachers to plan culturally responsive activities that cater to a heterogeneous group and to create an inclusive space for students' diverse backgrounds, identities, and voices. In my class, writing and sharing identity poems give students an opportunity to feel recognized and celebrated for their differences.

Into The Fray: Social Justice Teaching Gone Awry, Katalin Wargo

New Jersey English Journal

This article provides an account of the author's experience trying to teach through a social justice lens in a conservative Southern town after having taught primarily in more progressive parts of the country. She discusses the mistakes she made and what she learned from them throughout the experience that has made her a better teacher of students with vastly different ideologies than her own.

The Importance Of Grammar For English Learners And English Teachers In The Coming Decade, Brian White

New Jersey English Journal

The teaching of traditional grammar in traditional ways is out of favor, and for very good reason. Still, in the coming decade, teachers of English will need to "know their grammar" and be able to explain it to a burgeoning number of English Language Learners (ELLs).

Valuable Voices: Increasing Student Buy In Through Allowing Them To Be Involved In Planning, Erika Watts

New Jersey English Journal

This piece is on the research that surrounds the benefits of incorporating student voices into the classroom to improve student scores and also the student buy in. This allows students to feel included and as though their voices are being heard.

Preparing Tomorrow’S Leaders For Yesterday: Ai And Standardized Grammar Assessment, Jason C. Toncic

New Jersey English Journal

Following breakthroughs in machine learning over the past decade, artificial intelligence (AI) has been integrated into major aspects of schooling. One such subject matter is grammar, which has seen the advent of AI-based grammar checking. Through a critical lens, AI-grammar checking reveals inequitable prescriptivist grammar practices reified by standardized assessment.

Using Positionality To Dismantle The Missy Anne Syndrome In English Methods Classrooms, Darlene Russell

New Jersey English Journal

No abstract provided.

I Don’T Have The Answers, Sway! Teaching Secondary Literacy Methods Course Using An Inquiry Model Of Instruction, Kisha Porcher

New Jersey English Journal

In the era of high stakes testing, students have become conditioned to find the “right answer”and earn an “A” as opposed to engaging in critical thinking and productive struggle. In an effort to break this cycle, I restructured the literacy methods course to an inquiry model; Launch-Explore-Discuss.

Helping Students Choose A Reading Frame: Three Ways Of Teaching Jacqueline Woodson’S Harbor Me, Emily S. Meixner, Anne Peel

New Jersey English Journal

Choice and autonomy in ways of reading are just as important as choice and autonomy in what to read. Teaching students different frames for reading novels provides students with essential tools for making meaning of texts. This article explores three frames using the middle grade novel Harbor Me.

Helping Students Improve The Quality Of Their Sentences, Michael Laser

New Jersey English Journal

This article shares some of the teaching methods I've devised to address awkwardness and other sentence-level issues in student writing.