Education Commons^™

“I Don't Read No Books” : How Teachers Can Use Students' Literacy Stories To Change Literacy Lives., Stephanie J. Malone

Department of Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Practitioner knowledge, as the center for change in teacher education, is the heart of The Carnegie Project of the Educational Doctorate (CPED) program. Margaret Lata and Susan Wunder explain a key principle of CPED is to grow practitioners as change agents, through the development of a Problem of Practice. In their article, Investing in the Formative Nature of Professional Learning: Redirecting, Mediating, and Generating Education Practice-as-Policy (2012), they discuss how the capstone product that evolves from this Problem of Practice should impact the professional field by producing knowledge that informs and changes professional practice.

This Dissertation in Practice, “I …

Uncovering And Responding To The Professional Development Needs Of Afterschool Program Leaders Across Rural Nebraska, Kimberly K. Larson

Department of Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

An effective state-level professional development system designed for Nebraska 21^stCentury Community Learning Centers (21^stCCLC) program leaders should consider both the unique characteristics of the program leaders themselves, as well as the rural communities where the afterschool programs are implemented. Some of these differentiating characteristics include background of the program leader and their years of experience, the size of the community, availability of staff and frequency of staff turnover, availability of potential community partners, and the quality of the relationship with the school administration and teachers where the afterschool program is implemented. Ultimately, the state-level system must …

Adapting Self-Directed Online Professional Development For Nebraska Public Librarians, Holli Duggan

Department of Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

From Ainsworth to Yutan, from library systems with twelve branches (i.e., Omaha) with a legal service area population of 537,709 to single libraries serving a population of less than 1,000 (which describes 60% of all public libraries in Nebraska), the Nebraska Library Commission serves very different constituencies all with different needs and different resources. Given that diversity of librarianship, as a “Problem of Practice” (Carnegie Program for the Education Doctorate, 2014) I needed to learn how to optimize the continuing education opportunities offered by the Nebraska Library Commission to this diverse constituency. This included attending to the learning needs of …

Getting To The Why: Exploring Early Career Physical Science Teachers' Discourse And Assessment Practices., Aaron Alfred Musson

Department of Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Formative assessment, or assessment for learning, is an essential component of the interactions between teachers and learners. Teachers elicit statements of understandings to decide their next instructional steps. Similarly, students communicate what they know, and apply teachers’ responses. Formative assessment is as much assessment as discourse; teachers use both to determine and respond to student needs. When teachers use formative assessments effectively, they can guide student understanding, extend discussions, probe for deeper meanings, and provide feedback. Formative assessment provides an understanding of how students are growing (or struggling), which teachers can use to adjust instruction. Frequent formative assessment is strongly …

Veteran Public School Teachers' Perceptions Of Research-To-Practice Methods And Effectiveness: A Qualitative Study, Lesa L. Brand

Department of Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

In 2015, the United States government signed the Every Student Succeeds Act which called for evidence-based interventions, strategies, and programs in K-12 education. Mission statements in districts around the country echoed the need for evidence-based, or research-based practices in classrooms to bolster student achievement. While a wealth of research exists regarding the movement of research into practice, most studies are centered on teacher education programs, or pre-service teachers’ use of research in first or early years. Little is known about how veteran public school teachers apply research in their practices. In this qualitative inquiry, eleven veteran public school teachers from …