Education Commons^™

The Impact Of Sexual Abuse On Student Performance, Denelle M. Mcwherter

Graduate Research Papers

Child sexual abuse is a prevalent societal problem. Up to twenty five percent of children have been abused by the age of eighteen. Victims are significantly impacted academically, socially, and behaviorally. School counselors assume counseling, consulting, and coordinating roles as they assist victims, present prevention curriculum, and act as a referral source.

This paper addresses how sexual abuse affects victims and how counselors can assist victims in developing coping skills and increasing self esteem. In addition, how counselors can help foster a sense of belonging and safety for victims in the school setting will be described, with emphasis on how …

A Preferred Vision For Leading Elementary, Middle, And High Schools : A Reflective Essay, Jodie M. Schepler

Graduate Research Papers

This is a personal reflective research paper that is a discussion of my personal characteristics, values, beliefs, and philosophies, while also outlining qualities that I believe are essential for leaders in education. This paper is a personal statement that will lead to the explanation of what I believe constitutes an exemplary educational leader.

Fundamentals That Result In A Well-Managed School : A Reflective Essay, Brian Gravel

Graduate Research Papers

Educational leadership takes on many roles. In this paper I will reason in areas of collaboration, discipline, and planning, while exploring the relationship that they have on a well managed school. I will address the six Iowa Leadership Standards of: Professional Leadership, Visionary Leadership, Instructional Leadership, Collaborative Leadership, Organizational Leadership, Ethical Leadership, and Political Leadership; and make some parallels to my future success as an administrator using these standards.

The Effects Of Divorce On Children And Adolescents, Rachelle A. Haker

Graduate Research Papers

This research paper focuses on the effects of divorce on children and adolescents. Based on a review of literature, there are many short-term and long-term effects including emotional, behavioral, and physical issues. Children and adolescents vary in adjustment to divorce depending on multiple factors such as communication, conflict, and parental adjustment. The stages that children and adolescents of divorce go through depend on one's developmental stage and gender. Counselors can greatly influence how children and adolescents adjust to divorce.

Becoming A Better Me : An Examination Of Character Education At The Elementary Level, Lori D. Dobbin

Graduate Research Papers

The first day of school can be a difficult adjustment for many students. Some . students struggle with new settings and new rules. Each student enters the classroom with personal morals and values. These morals and character traits greatly influence the student's academic and social progress. This paper reviews character building and its unique ability to alter the perception of the student's world. The paper looks at the deficits of character and introduces possible solutions to restoring character in elementary-aged children. A closer look at the history of character education lays the foundation for a better understanding of character.

School Counselors And Character Education, Jacob M. Mueller

Graduate Research Papers

Character Education can be an essential aspect of creating a respectful climate in the school setting. Tragic incidents in schools across the country have heightened the awareness of how to create positive situations for all students who attend public schools. Too often, this awareness is not followed up with action. Character Education is an opportunity for educators to step up and put actions behind their lip service. Legislation surrounding education in America today sometimes creates difficult obstacles in implementing programs to foster a positive school environment. It can be done however, and is being done.

Children Of Incarcerated Parents And The Role Of The Elementary School Counselor, Megan A. Petersen

Graduate Research Papers

Of the 72 million minor children in the United States, 2 million of those have a parent who is currently incarcerated. The dynamics of a child's life are greatly altered when a parent is incarcerated, and many children struggle as a result. Without some form of support or intervention, they are five times more likely than other children to become incarcerated themselves. Elementary school counselors must be aware of the characteristics of children of incarcerated parents, while working to address their needs across numerous levels and contexts.

Toward Successful Student Writers: Change And Growth In Writing Workshop, Kirstey Ewald

Graduate Research Papers

A writing workshop has always been a part of my classroom. Since the beginnings of my career as an English teacher, I have believed that it allows my students the freedom required for them to think for themselves and to express their thoughts clearly. Yet while students have clamored for such trust and autonomy in their classes, they often have a hard time adapting to this change, to setting their own goals and making individual strides to meet those goals. They are very used to having their teachers tell them what to think and what to write about. They have …

Play Therapy, Melissa A. Hardman

Graduate Research Papers

Play therapy techniques are valuable tools for a variety of professionals who work with children. One need not be a registered play therapist to implement play techniques when working with child clients. There are many types of clients that would benefit from play therapy. There are several different theoretical approaches, but the researcher chose to focus on Adlerian Play Therapy, Client-Centered Play Therapy, Cognitive-Behavioral Play Therapy, and Psychodynamic Play Therapy. The paper considers the best location to implement play techniques, by urging the counselor to be aware of the setting's location within the building, ease of cleaning, available space, and …

Implementation Of Cooperative Groups And Single Gender Classrooms, Kara Haugen

Graduate Research Papers

The Dr. Walter Cunningham School for Excellence has three single-sex classrooms in place today. It has one all girls classroom at the second grade level, one all boys classroom at the second grade level, and one very unique all boys classroom at the first grade level. This classroom is unique because the teacher and the students will follow with each other all the way through fifth grade.

Since this is the first year of implementing single-sex classrooms there are many educators who need more clarification on this approach to education. In the following pages the researcher focuses on how the …

The Implications Of Anger And School Violence, Ronda Hilbert

Graduate Research Papers

A series of highly publicized school shootings in the Untied States generated the misperception of an epidemic of school violence. Fears of school violence stimulated an ill-advised expansion of zero tolerance school discipline policies and the widespread distribution of profiles or warning signs of potentially dangerous students for use by school administrators. This paper presents that little is known about student threats of violence, although students in special education tend to commit disciplinary violations at a higher rate than regular education students according to some studies. Threats of violence pose a dilemma for educators, who must balance federal requirements, the …

A Preferred Vision For Leading Secondary Schools : A Reflective Essay, Ralph J. Hughes

Graduate Research Papers

Great leadership is the key to achieving success within any organization, team, and in my case, school. A strong leader always tries to keep things positive and his or her team on the same page, trying to achieve the same goal. To achieve the highest level of success within a school, an educational leader must: develop and implement a shared vision, develop clear communication, provide strong instructional leadership, and develop and maintain a positive school climate.

Meeting The Accountability Challenge In Guided Reading Instruction, Rachelle E. Jensen

Graduate Research Papers

The demands for accountability and mandated consequences require a balanced and thoughtful approach to literacy instruction. The purpose of this study was to investigate the opinions of teachers regarding the use of guided reading and how it benefits the need to meet the accountability challenge. Seven teachers were chosen to take part in this interviewing process. All of the participants' responses focused on a global theme of accountability. Teachers explained that they were more accountable for their students' instruction through three key factors: accountability through guided reading, accountability through conversations with colleagues, and time based accountability.

The Impact Of Math Teaching Strategies On Math Achievement, Patty Jenkins

Graduate Research Papers

The following study will highlight student achievement analysis of selected portions of the Iowa Test of Basic Skills of fourth grade students at Lincoln Elementary School. Teacher interviews about planning for teaching math, teaching strategies used, and outcomes are the second part of this research. A student survey about strategies teachers use and attitudes toward math is included along with the results of classroom action research. These data will be will be utilized to answer the question: Has the implementation of math teaching strategies had a positive impact on student math achievement at Lincoln Elementary School?

Is Teaching History Reasonable, Worthwhile, And Beneficial In The Elementary Grades?, Jill Johnson

Graduate Research Papers

The literature review paper provided reassures the reader that in fact it is beneficial and most importantly, vital to teach historical knowledge to students. Through extensive research, multiple studies confirmed the importance of history instruction in the elementary classroom accompanied with worthwhile, meaningful lessons that allow the students to truly analyze, explore, and internalize the material.

In attempt to provide a quality education for all American students, we must take the following steps: implementing and analyzing more research in regards to history instruction in the elementary classroom; ensure that all educators have an adequate wealth of background knowledge in the …

An Effective Leader : A Reflective Essay, Darin Jones

Graduate Research Papers

Leadership can be accomplished in multiple ways: vocally, by example, or by a combination of the two. Any choice is.acceptable, but in order to be an effective leader you need to choose a method and believe in it. Personally, I lead by example. I work to be a vocal leader by praising in public. It is important to let students see it is all right to tell someone they did a very good job.

Setting good examples for students is key to leadership. Many times this is done by responses to situations. Reaction is quite often done without thought and …

Could Distributed Curriculum Improve The Itbs Scores Of Non-Proficient Students?, Lesli Lancey-Wensman

Graduate Research Papers

Will the use of a distributed math curriculum improve the outcomes of students who consistently score between the 20th and 30th percentile on ITBS tests? That question and others are addressed in this paper. The purpose of this study was to determine what strategies were being used for math instruction, if those strategies were working for all students, and whether a distributed curriculum would improve the math outcomes of students with disabilities who were not working at their current grade level.

Critical Elements Essential For Exemplary Educational Leadership : A Reflective Essay, Susan M. Muehl

Graduate Research Papers

My core beliefs are very. strong when it comes to education. All students need effective staff members who are supportive of their endeavors. A supportive staff member is someone who is apart of the school community, they work well with others through effective communication, they support each other, and they all work toward the common shared vision of the school. My core beliefs match my goals to become an effective principal and the way I live my life.

The cultivation of a supportive community within a school happens over a period of time. The principal is the captain that leads …

A Preferred Vision For Administering Secondary Schools : A Reflective Essay, Theresa A. Fisher

Graduate Research Papers

Effective principals articulate a clear vision about what they expect of adults and students. They do this more than just the beginning of the year. They spend time explaining to students what they expect in achievement, behavior, attitude,and effort. They don't make excuses. They make sure learners have what they need to meet high expectations. They motivate, inspire, provide direction, and celebrate excellence. If principals don't have high expectations, they cannot expect much of others.

Principals must establish high expectations in their schools. You can model high expectations by selecting challenging goals, informing others of your dreams, and keeping people …

What I Believe About Leadership And Education : A Reflective Essay, Matthew R. Bro

Graduate Research Papers

The works of a great leader will brilliantly encompass many specific critical elements. One must consider the many different ways an individual leader's own unique personality can combine the critical elements together. The critical leadership elements combined with the individual's own unique personality traits will make one realize that to break down the critical elements of the exceptional leader is a daunting task.

We are very complex, fearfully and wonderfully made creatures (Psalm 139:14) that cannot be analyzed easily. However we have likely experienced great leadership, and have asked ourselves: Why it is that this person motivates me, challenges me, …

English Language Learner Program At Irving Elementary : Finding A Life Preserver For Sink Or Swim Education, Pamela Argotsinger

Graduate Research Papers

Each year the United States becomes more ethnically and linguistically diverse and as a result, so do our schools. Students from non-English speaking backgrounds represent the fastest growing subset of the K-12 student population. In the 2003-2004 school year, 5.5 million school-age children were English language learners (Leos, 2004). As school districts across the country are faced with initiating and implementing programs for these learners, they must factor in the high stakes of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act and the possible impact of a new group of test scores on their adequate yearly progress.

The purpose of this …

The Implementation Of Reciprocal Teaching At Central Middle School, Audrey Kimball

Graduate Research Papers

This study was designed to evaluate the implementation of Reciprocal Teaching at Central Middle School. The purpose of Reciprocal Teaching is to improve reading comprehension through the use of student/teacher collaboration. It involves teaching students strategies that help them monitor their own learning and thinking.· Reciprocal Teaching moves reading from whole class instruction to individuals. Strategies can be used at any grade level, with fiction or expository text.

Impact Of The Arts On Students' Learning, Sook Ming Kong

Graduate Research Papers

The role of the arts has been undermined for a long time in the school curriculum. Recently, a group of researchers embarked on a number of studies investigating the positive effects which the arts has on students' performance in school. The results provide an insight into the fact that students who have high involvement in the arts perform better on a variety of academic measures such as grades in English, and scores on standardized tests.

The studies also provide evidence that participation in the arts helps to reduce the drop- out rate of at-risk students and those in low SES …

Fourth Grade Student Achievement On Math Standardized Tests In The Absence Of A Math Curriculum, Trista Manternach

Graduate Research Papers

Throughout the last few decades the importance of reading instruction has been the focus for schools and school districts across the nation. At Lincoln Elementary School in Waterloo, Iowa the focus has been no different. However, in the last two years, academic achievement in the area of math has become as important as reading with the advent of No Child Left Behind.

Although teachers were told that math was important, they lacked a required curriculum until a year after math became a focus of student achievement. The purpose of this study is to answer the following question: Did the absence …

Writing In Math And Distributive Learning In Math Problem Solving, Mary Jo Metz

Graduate Research Papers

Many teachers, parents and students have questions about single sex classrooms. Are there gender based strategies that can be used in single sex classrooms and coed classrooms?

The purpose of this study was to investigate a possible difference in the perceptions of boys and girls in their math problem solving ability, and to determine if writing in math and distribution of curriculum would be effective strategies in math problem solving. The researcher conducted a classroom study to determine the effects of writing in math and compare the impact on males and females. In addition, another study investigated the distribution of …

Effective Strategies For Reading Improvement, Susan Pelleymounter

Graduate Research Papers

Longfellow Elementary has had a history of poor results on the Iowa Test of Basic Skills. To address the problem, many innovations have been implemented such as Small Group Reading Instruction, vocabulary building, phonemic awareness, and sight word instruction.

This study was completed in an effort to determine if what teachers did on a daily basis to teach reading had an impact on students. This is important because teachers need their teaching to be efficient and effective. Test scores must increase at our school and we need data to prove that what we are doing is worthwhile. The question for …

How Can Technology Assist In The Effectiveness Of After School Programs?, Imani A. Phillips

Graduate Research Papers

This review examines how technology assists in the effectiveness of learning in after-school programs. There are different types of after school programs available to parents with school-age children. Results describe the use of technology and the influence it has on the learning ability of students who are at risk. Meaningful, engaged learning can be promoted through the use of technology. Experts in the field state that technology facilitates learning by addressing the need of the individual learner. This review's conclusions indicate that a learning community can encourage personalized learning activities, collaboration, and motivation. The integration of effective technology into a …

How Can Teachers Motivate Secondary Language Arts Students? : 5 Prototypes, Kylee Schmitt Pusteoska

Graduate Research Papers

This research project began as a stream of unmotivated students walked through the door of a classroom. The author began to understand that while the current focus in American education is on standards and curriculum issues, the motivation of secondary students is often a lost and unrepresented topic in today's rhetoric. After being in the classroom for over seven years, the author was able to discern five prototypes of students. All five had different motivational styles and worked for different reasons. Using firsthand observations and scouring the current literature, the author was able to come up with some specific and …

A Distributed Strategies Approach To Teaching Multiplication And Problem Solving, Holly K. Ritter

Graduate Research Papers

Multiplication and problem solving are two fundamental math topics in third grade. The expectation is that students will enter fourth grade with a strong foundation in multiplication and problem solving, which was established in third grade. This research project implements a variety of multiplication and problem solving strategies, in conjunction with a "distributed" or "spaced" curriculum style. Distributed teaching means multiplication is introduced and practiced on a regular basis. This project addresses the question; . Does a distributed curriculum in multiplication and problem solving improve students' understanding of multiplication and problem solving and improve students' assessment results?

Implementation Of Reciprocal Teaching Strategies, Michael Sauer

Graduate Research Papers

The purpose of this study is to address the following research question: How effective are the Reciprocal Teaching Strategies in increasing reading comprehension? Peer observation and coaching were done to observe each other using the Reciprocal Teaching Strategies in the classroom. Two different observations were done, each time by a different peer coach. After each observation, the lesson which had been observed was briefly discussed. From this interaction, further suggestions for implementation could be made from our peers.