Covid-19 And Learning Loss At Kalamazoo Public Schools, Randall W. Eberts

Upjohn Institute Policy and Research Briefs

No abstract provided.

The Effect Of The Covid-19 Pandemic On Kps Student Enrollment And Nwea Test Scores, Randall W. Eberts

Upjohn Institute Working Papers

This report focuses on the COVID-19 pandemic in the Kalamazoo Public Schools District in Kalamazoo, Michigan, which closed its doors to students from mid-March 2020 to June 2021. During this time, instruction transitioned from face-to-face to virtual, with students having three options for virtual instruction. In addition to individual KPS student data, the study looks at the NWEA national sample as presented in several publications and technical appendices. The study addresses three basic questions, as well as examining students’ race/ethnicity and poverty status, summer learning loss to determine the change in achievement gains, and attendance rates as an example of …

Educators’ Perceptions Of Implementing The Specialized Program Individualizing Reading Excellence: A Multiple-Case Study, Terra Elizabeth Brown Jordan

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to describe educators’ perceptions concerning the implementation of the Specialized Program Individualizing Reading Excellence (SPIRE) as an intervention to help students meet state proficiency standards at a large suburban school district in Utah. Bandura’s self-efficacy theory served as the theoretical framework to guide an inquiry into educators’ beliefs and how well they executed the SPIRE intervention to answer the central research question, “How do educators explain their perceptions of the use of SPIRE in the classroom?” This study utilized a multiple-case study design that captured the perception of 12 educators who …

Parental Perspectives On The Role Of Music As A Core Subject, Justine M. Hansen

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Despite the designation of music as a core subject by federal and many state education policies, instructional time for elementary music classes is disproportionately less than that allocated to other core subjects. The perceptions held by parents of elementary school children may indicate the extent to which elementary general music education is valued by the public, affecting the allocation of instructional time. At present, no research exists examining the views held by parents concerning the designation of music as a core subject and its role in a well-rounded education. The purpose of this study was to examine the perceptions held …

Multilingual Zambia - Language Issues In Primary/Secondary Schools Of The Eastern/Southern Provinces, Kenzie Steiner

NUTR/GLST 498b: Global Research Experiences in Nutrition and Health

Introduction: Zambia is a multilingual country that uses 8 different languages for instruction including English and 7 other indigenous languages.

Methods: Survey research conducted between May-June 2022 on 6-7th graders within 9 Zambian schools. Classroom observations made and teachers interviewed.

Results: In Eastern and Southern Provinces, Zambian teachers speak an average of 5 languages while students speak an average of 2. Both teachers and students say English remains the most important language followed by first languages.

Conclusion: Continued research on language-in-education policies and impacts on student performance must be conducted if “One Zambia, One Nation” is meant to promote all …

School Division Policies Related To Suicide Prevention And Response, David Naff, Fatemah A. Khawaji, Morgan Meadowes, Jill Flynn, Meg Sheriff, Lauren Powell, Lisa Gwyn, Tameka Burroughs, Jean Samuel

MERC Publications

Suicide is one of the leading causes of death among youth age 10-19, and is an increasing concern in the wake of COVID-19. K-12 schools are crucial spaces for offering mental health support to students, and can implement policies to help prevent suicidal thoughts and behaviors. This MERC research and policy brief focuses on education policy related to suicide prevention and response. It is structured to answer five questions: 1) What are recent trends in youth suicide? 2) What does research show about school division policies that are effective in suicide prevention and response? 3) What policies in Virginia and …

Decoupling Property And Education, Nicole Stelle Garnett

Journal Articles

Over the past several years, the landscape of K–12 education policy has shifted dramatically, thanks in part to increasing prevalence of parental-choice policies, including intra- and inter-district public school choice, charter schools, and private-school choice policies like vouchers and (most recently) universal education savings accounts. These policies decouple property and education by delinking students’ educational options from their residential addresses. The wisdom and efficacy of parental choice as education policy is hotly debated. This Essay takes a step back from these education-policy debates and examines the underappreciated fact that decoupling property and education also advances at least economic development goals. …

The Impact Of Teacher Student Relationship On The Academic, Behavioral And Socioemotional Growth And Development Of Students Aged Pre-K To 12, Graciella Arrascue

Education Theses

Fostering strong relationships with students is a pedagogical approach which can benefit both students and teachers. This research analyzed the application of this methodology in classrooms with students aged pre-k to 12. Based on this research, teacher student relationships can positively benefit student outcomes in academic, behavioral, and social emotional areas. The findings show how to establish these strong relationships, how relationships are a tool for classroom management and how relationships affect student motivation.

Emerging Issues And Innovations In Public Pk-12 Education: Implications For Strategic Planning, David B. Naff, Lisa Gwyn, Fred Gatty, Tara Willging, Marzia Farhana, Jill Flynn, Cammie Justus-Smith, Jean Samuel, Alexander Campbell, Ciana Cross, Jamie Nervil, Michael L. Schad

MERC Publications

This research and policy brief from the Metropolitan Educational Research Consortium (MERC) explores emerging issues and innovations that PK-12 school districts should consider when engaging in strategic planning. It includes a discussion of peer reviewed literature related to how PK-12 school districts engage in strategic planning, a thematic analysis of strategic plans across Virginia (as well as the largest school districts in the United States), and an exploration of Google trends related to prominent topics in PK-12 education over the previous five years. It explores the following questions: 1) How do PK-12 school systems engage in strategic planning?, 2) What …

Lesson Planning In 5th Grade Visual Arts: Teaching Art Lessons Aligned With Washington State Visual Arts Standards To Fifth Grade Students In An Art Specialist Classroom, Hanna Johnson

WWU Honors College Senior Projects

With the growing push for increased time spent on STEM in classrooms, visual arts often fall to the wayside. Even rarer is the opportunity to practice teaching visual art lessons in a dedicated elementary art classroom. This project describes the process of developing art curriculum for fifth grade students, based on course work in ART 380 Educating the Child and using Washington State Visual Arts standards and corresponding assessment. Over the course of six weeks, with one 45-minute lesson per week, students produced a series of images illustrating an important event, person, or place in their life. By producing these …

Child Science Identity Interview Guide And Protocol, Heidi Cian, Remy Dou

Department of Teaching and Learning

While many data collection tools exist to elicit how individuals think about prototypical STEM persons (e.g., the Draw-a-Scientist assessment), such tools fail to capture the nuance of how individuals think about STEM and STEM personhood and how those perceptions change according to context and “in real life”. We designed the Child Science Identity Interview Guide and Protocol to learn about how youth see everyday experiences as “STEM” (or a particular subfield) and think of themselves and those in their social orbits as STEM persons.

Public Charter And District Public Schools In The Mountain West, 2019-2021, Zachary Billot, Kristian Thymianos, Vanessa Booth, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

K-12 Education

This fact sheet explores data from the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools (NAPCS) report, “Voting With Their Feet: A State-Level Analysis of Public Charter School and District Public School Trends.” Specifically, we examine enrollment trends for district public schools and public charter schools in the Mountain West (Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah) for the 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 school years.

The Great Migration And Educational Opportunity, Cavit Baran, Eric Chyn, Bryan A. Stuart

Upjohn Institute Working Papers

This paper studies the impact of the First Great Migration on children. We use the complete-count 1940 Census to estimate selection-corrected place effects on education for children of Black migrants. On average, Black children gained 0.8 years of schooling (12 percent) by moving from the South to the North. Many counties that had the strongest positive impacts on children during the 1940s offer relatively poor opportunities for Black youth today. Opportunities for Black children were greater in places with more schooling investment, stronger labor market opportunities for Black adults, more social capital, and less crime.

How The Great Migration Changed Black Children’S Educational Attainment, Cavit Baran, Eric Chyn, Bryan A. Stuart

Upjohn Institute Policy and Research Briefs

No abstract provided.

State School Finance In The Mountain West, 2019, Kristian Thymianos, Ally M. Beckwith, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

K-12 Education

This fact sheet examines K-12 school finance indicators drawing from an original report by Albert Shanker Institute and Rutgers University Graduate School of Education. These indicators show whether states are funding school districts to national standards. This fact sheet examines state-level data for the Mountain West (Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah) from the State School Finance Profiles report for the 2018-2019 school year.

The Importance Of Parent-Teacher Communication And Collaboration And How To Enhance Them For Various Types Of Families, Madeleine O'Neil

Senior Honors Projects

An educator is defined as someone who provides instruction to others. What this definition does not include is how the role of a teacher or educator goes far beyond merely providing instructions and teaching others. In order to be effective, teachers must learn how to adequately communicate and collaborate with their students, other education professionals, and families. Especially in the education field, teachers must learn how to communicate and collaborate with each student’s family to help create positive, productive, and beneficial professional relationships.

Communication should be ongoing and should be carried out in a manner that works for both the …

Make Time For Movement: 5-Minute Exercise Breaks In The Classroom, Catherine O'Donnell

Senior Honors Projects

Picture yourself back in elementary school. Have you ever struggled to finish an assignment no matter how hard you tried? You may have felt antsy, unfocused, or completely exhausted from the constant thinking and brain power it takes to complete a full six hour school day. What could you have done to regain focus and energy to continue learning? An exercise break! As an Elementary Education major and certified Group Exercise fitness instructor, I aspire to combine my passion for teaching and fitness by bringing exercise into the classroom. For my project, I have designed 5-minute movement breaks that follow …

Curiosity, Motivation, Autonomy, And Lifelong Learning In Education And The United States Marine Corps, Cynthia Malmquist

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

Curiosity, intrinsic motivation, and autonomy-supportive teaching all promote lifelong learning in both the classroom and Marine Corps. Humans are all born with curiosity. Children inherently practice forms of intrinsic motivation. Most would agree that they do not like being micromanaged - they enjoy a sense of freedom when completing tasks. Despite this, many students learn in a controlling environment and many Marines work under controlling leaders. Though a large amount of time is spent on learning through the first 18 years of life, lifelong learning does not come naturally and is not commonly practiced. The research and ideas discussed below …

Oral History: A Tool For The Elementary And Middle Classroom, Jessica Keiser

Senior Honors Theses

Modern historical instruction requires educators to cover broad expanses of history and prepare students for standardized testing. In the push to meet state standards and cover the vast curriculum in short periods of time, many educators have begun to teach to the textbook. Much to the detriment of students, this educational practice has favored periodization and content quantity over the development of crucial historical skills. Rather than adhering to popular education trends, teachers can consider implementing oral history projects within their elementary and middle school classrooms. Oral history is a methodology that employs first-hand accounts to teach about key historical …

Music Is The Intervention: The Intersections Of Music As A Therapeutic Activity In At-Risk Youth, Gladys H. Gonzalez Landaverde

Senior Honors Theses

Across the United States, public schools face many discrepancies in the quality and caliber of education that a student can expect to receive. While schools try to address the vast needs of students, many children and adolescents are unfortunately faced with choosing between prioritizing their education and the circumstances faced outside of the school day. The discrepancies in schooling range from the quality in the commonly accepted core curriculum like English and mathematics to the opportunities offered outside of traditional academia like music. Unfortunately, at-risk students are unlikely to have access to music education in the same ease as their …

Teach A Person To Fish: An Examination Of The Functionalities Of Outdoor Classrooms In Windsor-Essex County, Loretta M. Sbrocca

Education Publications

ABSTRACT

Outdoor classrooms are valuable learning environments that are adaptable in the face of differing terrain, climate, geography, weather and changing educational requirements. They can be used to teach all subjects, engage students in personal development goals and organizational priorities, and promote community involvement. How can educators harness the vast potential of outdoor classrooms as a learning tool? Understanding their functionalities is one means. This research employs an online questionnaire and optional follow-up interviews with various types of educators throughout Windsor-Essex County to help participants understand the functionalities of their own outdoor classrooms. Results showed that educators had different interpretations …

Teacher Retention Policy Coherence: An Analysis Of Policies And Practices Across Federal, State, And Division Levels, Andrene Castro, Adria Hoffman, Jonathan D. Becker, David Naff, Peter S. Willis, Andy Kane

MERC Publications

As part of a larger MERC study, this report provides an overview of federal, state, and regional policies and practices relevant to teacher retention. Using key informant interviews and document analysis, the report addresses the following research questions: What teacher retention policies exist at the federal, state, and local levels? How are these policies structured at the state level and local levels? How do teacher retention policies vary across MERC divisions? Following the findings, the report presents recommendations for policy and practice.

Discussion Of Educational Philosphy For Elementary Math Educators, Daniel Kurzweil

Open Educational Resources

No abstract provided.

Exploring Long-Term Impacts Of Self-Regulated Learning Interventions In K-12 Contexts: A Systematic Review, Erin Cousins, Linda Bol, Tian Luo

Educational Foundations & Leadership Faculty Publications

While research illustrates the benefits of interventions designed to improve self-regulated learning (SRL) and academic achievement, far fewer studies have examined the durability of these effects. This review synthesizes research on the lasting effects of 17 comprehensive SRL interventions on variables related to metacognition, cognition, motivation, and achievement in K-12 populations. Results reveal common patterns of design, domain-specificity, intervention complexity, and style of measurement instrument. Intervention effects tend to be durable regarding achievement and SRL but were mixed when presented across multiple measures of SRL. Overall findings imply that SRL interventions can lead to enduring effects on achievement and better …

"Read It Again!": Storytelling To Imitate The Great Teacher, Kate Whatley

Senior Honors Theses

The student’s mind is bent on stories, asking mothers around the world to ‘read it again’. These stories preserve information and emotions for centuries. In the classroom, stories enliven motivation and empathy in ways that result in higher academic achievement and social awareness. Learning to use stories as a key instructional strategy will allow for more equitable opportunities in classrooms, encourage mental health and truth telling for the teacher and the student collectively, and allow the academic community to imitate Christ by contributing to the bigger story taking place across time. In application of using stories as teachers, this thesis …

A Velvet Rope Of Exclusion: The Delmar Divide, Madison Beirne

Undergraduate Research Symposium

Many reports have been published about the complex topic of segregation in the Greater St. Louis area. However, the effect of years of systemic segregation on education has not been adequately discussed in a modern context. This report studies the root causes of the Delmar Divide in an attempt to understand the impact it produced in the educational community. St. Louis is a classically divided city and the public-school system has suffered as a result of educational inequities. This work focuses on how the Delmar Divide created pockets that continue to marginalize residents, particularly students. The effect that purposeful segregation …

Student And Teacher Diversity In The Mountain West, Marie A. Falcone, Guadalupe De La Rosa, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

K-12 Education

This fact sheet highlights public K-12 teacher and student diversity in the Mountain West states of Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah. We explore data from Michael Hansen and Diana Quintero’s “Mountain West states face growing teacher diversity gaps” a 2018 Brookings Institution report. Specifically, we explore the teacher and student population in Mountain West states by race, revealing a disproportionate gap between students of color and teachers of color.

College Of Education & Human Development _Re-Opening Schools In The Midst Of The Covid-19 Pandemic: Lessons For Leaders From The 2020-2021 School Year, Catharine Biddle, Maria Frankland

Teaching, Learning & Research Documents

Report highlighting the findings of the “Beyond Crisis Schooling” research project which has worked to understand how school leaders understood and responded to the evolving landscape of the COVID crisis between March 2020 and June 2021, including what factors were most important in addressing both the unique and common challenges that their districts experienced through the analysis of
over 7,000 district documents and interviews with 52 district leaders.

Included as supplemental content are screenshots of the project's webpages.

Afterschool Club: German For K-5, Justin Solheim

Honors Expanded Learning Clubs

The lessons found in this paper were designed for a group of 20-25 elementary schools students in downtown Lincoln, NE. The students were split into two groups: K-2 and 3-5. Through a variety of activities, the students learned the basics of the German language and culture. Many of the lessons are simple and do not require difficult thinking, as this was a summer club. Instead, they allow students to collaborate, move around, color, and solve puzzles.

Differentiation For Gifted And Talented Elementary Students: What Teachers Know And Implement, Karyn Michelle Andrews

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The purpose of this research was to measure the ways elementary school teachers are differentiating instruction for their gifted and talented students and to gauge their awareness of the need for implementing appropriate differentiation strategies they use in their classrooms. The study surveyed elementary teachers currently teaching in one large school district in Kentucky. Teachers responded to 38 survey items, indicating how often they use specific practices with their gifted students versus with their average-achieving students.

The results indicated that there is much work to be done to increase teacher awareness of the importance of differentiated instruction for gifted and …