Education Commons^™

Economic Evaluation Of Teacher Induction Programs: A Report, Jonathan D. Becker, Elisa Tedona, Matthew Togna

MERC Publications

Research shows that teacher induction programs can be effective as measured by a number of outcomes. However, research also shows that teacher induction programs vary greatly from one district to another. Furthermore, there is no research that examines teacher induction programs with respect to costs and benefits. Educational leaders and stakeholders do not need to wait on formal institutional research to do such an economic evaluation.

This report, in combination with a How-to-Guide, the Teacher Induction Program Cost Matrix and the Teacher Induction Program Benefit-Cost Workbook, comprises a toolkit designed to allow school and district leaders to conduct …

Economic Evaluation Of Teacher Induction Programs: A Toolkit How-To Guide, Jonathan D. Becker, Elisa Tedona, Matthew Togna

MERC Publications

Research shows that teacher induction programs can be effective as measured by a number of outcomes. However, research also shows that teacher induction programs vary greatly from one district to another. Furthermore, there is no research that examines teacher induction programs with respect to costs and benefits. Educational leaders and stakeholders do not need to wait on formal institutional research to do such an economic evaluation.

This how-to guide, in combination with a comprehensive report, the Teacher Induction Program Cost Matrix and the Teacher Induction Program Benefit-Cost Workbook, comprises a toolkit designed to allow school and district leaders to …

Teaching Without Walls: A Portraiture Study Of Nature-Based Educators In Duluth, Minnesota, Christina Wild

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

This dissertation explores the lived experience of nature-based educators in Duluth, Minnesota. Portraiture served as the methodological framework for learning about how teachers in Duluth got into teaching and why they remain on the job. Teacher turnover and attrition is a national problem exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Yet, teachers who perceive better working conditions are less likely to leave the profession. In addition, nature-based education has positive influences on students. Past research in nature-based education has looked at students rather than teachers. This study’s findings offer key lessons in the stories of educators who stay in teaching and experience …

The Application Of Praxis In High School Classrooms: A Qualitative Case Study, Tonia R. Maher

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore the application of educational research-based instructional methods by teachers in public secondary high school classrooms in Colorado. The use of educational research-based instructional methods will be defined as praxis. Bruner’s constructivist theory of learning and instruction guided this study. This qualitative case study employed an epistemological perspective that provided the framework for predicting, describing, empowering, and deconstructing worldviews by increasing the knowledge that leads to further understanding of the application of praxis in public secondary high school classrooms. The setting was Colorado public high schools. Data were collected from interviews, …

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.

Centering Educational Resilience On Mission Through Research, Professional Development, And Collaborative Teaching, Anneris Coria-Navia Phd, Glynis M. Bradfield

Faculty Publications

External triggers such as the global pandemic have inevitably caused paradigm thinking shifts. These challenging times present opportunities to reimagine the possibilities of Seventh-day Adventist Education in the areas of research, professional development, crisis management, differentiating instruction, collaborative learning, and holistic student service in person and online. Supported by action research, this presentation reviews effective teaching frameworks and best practices that education in varied contexts can leverage to transform the challenges into opportunities for philosophical realignment spurring renewal of mission and improvement of practice. Through the study and reflection of our own educational experience through crisis, we present lessons learned …

But Are They Good Teachers? Examining Who Takes Up Teacher Leadership And How Their Instruction Differs From Their Peers, Peter D. Wiens, Jori S. Beck

Teaching & Learning Faculty Publications

Teacher leaders function in many roles in supporting school success including instructional leadership and supporting colleagues. This study draws upon the Status of the Social Studies Survey (Fitchett & Vanfossen, 2013) to examine the responses of 6,702 US-based middle and high school social studies teachers to understand the antecedents of teacher leadership and the instructional practices of these individuals compared to their peers. Survey responses indicate that the vast majority of social studies teachers report participating in some aspect of teacher leadership. Teacher leaders tend to be less experienced and have less educational attainment while employing more research-based instructional techniques.

Lessons From The Pivot: Higher Education's Response To The Pandemic, Janine S. Davis, Christy Irish

Education Faculty Articles

The intensity of major events often leads us to remember minute details of where we were and what we were doing when they occurred: what we wore as we watched the towers fall on September 11, 2001; the faces of our classmates when the space shuttle Challenger exploded on January 28, 1986; the smell in the air when we lived through a major earthquake, fire, or other personal tragedy. Similarly, faculty, staff, and students will remember the series of moments that led to the closure of their schools and universities as the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic spread throughout the world--the timeline …

Educating For Global Competence: Co-Constructing Outcomes In The Field: An Action Research Project, Kristina A. Van Winkle

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

Capacity building for globally competent educators is a 21st Century imperative to address contemporary complex and constantly changing challenges. This action research project is grounded in positive psychology, positive organizational scholarship, relational cultural theory, and relational leadership practices. It sought to identify adaptive challenges educators face as they try to integrate globally competent teaching practices into their curricula, demonstrate learning and growth experienced by the educators in this project, and provide guidance and solutions to the challenges globally competent educators face. Six educators participated in this three-phase project, which included focus groups, reflective journal entries, and an exit interview. Data …

Computer Science Teacher Survey, Josh B. Mcgee, Sarah C. Mckenzie

Arkansas Education Reports

In April/May of 2020, the University of Arkansas’ Office for Education Policy (OEP), in partnership with Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson's Computer Science and Cyber Security Task Force, fielded a survey with the 400+ Arkansas educators who at that time held a computer science endorsement (528), computer science approval code (5016), or computer science technical permit (5014) on their educator’s license. The survey received 153 responses, a nearly 40 percent response rate.

Cognitive Science For The Classroom, Kyle Heys

TFSC Publications and Presentations

Kyle Heys shares principles of cognitive science and how they can be used in the college classroom to enhance student learning.

Cultural Diversity Professional Development In Schools Survey, Krystal R. Thomas, Hillary Parkhouse, Jesse Senechal, Zoey Lu, Laura Faulcon, Julie Gorlewski, David B. Naff

MERC Publications

This report presents findings from the Metropolitan Educational Research Consortium (MERC) Cultural Diversity Within Schools Survey. This survey was designed for school- based professionals (i.e., teachers, instructional staff, administrators) within the MERC region. Administered in the fall of 2018, the survey collected information about experiences of professional development related to cultural diversity, attitudes toward cultural diversity within schools, perceptions of barriers and opportunities, and perspectives on the need for professional development. Section 1 of the report discusses the context for this survey effort: increased cultural diversity in our schools, increased cultural mismatch between students and teachers, and multicultural education as …

Undoing The Internalized Impacts Of White Supremacy: Envisioning Anti-Racist Change With White Teachers At A 6-12 Urban Pilot School, Casey Z. Andrews

Critical and Creative Thinking Capstones Collection

In order to best educate students, white teachers must engage in significant internal and interpersonal work in order to interrogate their own racial identity and develop a capacity for anti-racist pedagogy and practice. The need for white educators to do this work is challenged by the dominant system of white supremacy that dictates the structures of the American public school system; further, educators are limited by the racist rules and policies of the individual districts and institutions in which they work. Through intentional, explicit community building with white teachers, we can hope to begin to move towards anti-racist institutional change. …

Lessons Learned From Observing Teaching Practices: The Case Of Ghana, Corinne Brion, Paula A. Cordeiro

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) call for providing a quality education for all by 2030. In order to achieve the SDGs and improve educational outcomes globally, it is essential to understand what teaching strategies teachers use and to comprehend if students are learning. The purpose of this study is 1) to understand what teaching pedagogies Ghanaian teachers use in their Low-Fee Private Schools (LFPSs); and 2) to determine whether students stay on task. Using the Stallings Snapshot Observation instrument, the researchers observed 19 class periods in numerous grades in four schools. Findings reveal that the teachers used a combination of …

Leading School-Based Coaching To Evaluate Open Education Resources, Kathryn Moyle

Digital learning research

This presentation was a people's choice session at the 2018 ISTE conference and engaged participants in conversations about coaching approaches that when coupled with strategies to evaluate Open Educational Resources (OER) can build the capacity of teachers and improve the learning by students. The session provided participants with opportunities to discuss leadership approaches to the evaluation of OER resources that are consistent with education policies, build the capacity of educators and improve the quality of learning by students; and coaching methods for school leaders that enables the identification, analysis, curation and incorporation of OER resources into classroom practices.

The Everydayness Of Tina: An Introduction, Kristine Sunday

Teaching & Learning Faculty Publications

When I first learned that my graduate student mentor, Dr. Christine Marmé Thompson decided that it was time to retire, I had mixed emotions. On the one hand, I was happy. I had spent many evenings with Tina (as she is known to colleagues, family, and friends), and her husband, Dr. Dan Thompson, on the patio of her State College, Pennsylvania home, sharing in the intersections between professional and personal lives. I knew that both she, and Dan were looking forward to more leisurely explorations and the slower pace that a life outside the demands of the academy provides. I …

Rwu's New 'Rising Tide' Of Educational Opportunity 9-8-2016, Roger Williams University

School of Law Conferences, Lectures & Events

No abstract provided.

Hybrid Plcs: Building Collaboration Among Teachers In Different Schools, Laura Robertson, Pamela Cromie, Lindsay Lester, Jennifer Hill, Diana O'Neal

ETSU Faculty Works

How do highly motivated teachers from different schools collaborate? We formed a hybrid PLC that included face-to-face meetings and online interactions to improve student learning.

Ethnodrama As A Path To Teacher Euphoria: How Might Ethnodrama Influence Teachers' Perceptions Of Themselves And Promote Teacher Euphoria?, Rodney W. Grist

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

This study is intended as a mini-pilot program, exploring the potential of ethnodrama to positively impact the burnout experiences of urban public secondary teachers. The current study holds small sample sizes and limited development time, yet an informant panel of nine teachers met in three sessions to discuss and reveal their personal stories, and to plan an ethnodramatic performance to be shared with the entire school faculty and administration (Mienczakowski, Handbook 468; Saldaña, Anthology 2). Informant panelists’ dispositions toward burnout was measured pre and post experience via the Maslach Burnout Inventory, and a small, non- participant group was also measured …

China's 80后 And 90后: The Next Generation Of Leaders In The World's Next Superpower, A Students-Teaching-Students Course, Patrick Slavin

Senior Honors Projects

In light of China’s recent reemergence as a global superpower, it is becoming increasingly important for westerners to understand its history and culture. For current college students, the culture of China’s youth is particularly pertinent.

In this project, a course, HPR 107: Chinese Youth Culture, was designed and taught through the Students-Teaching-Students program, which provides senior Honor’s Program students the opportunity to design and teach their own Honor’s Program course. The HPR 107 course focuses on China’s 80后 and 90后 generations, those born in the 1980s and 1990s, respectively.

This multi-faceted project includes: subject matter research, course development, pedagogy development, …

Evaluation Of An Adult Education Technology Program, Iwasan D. Kejawa Ed.D

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

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the adult education technology program at a chartered alternative adult education center in Florida. The adult education center had a low rate of students passing the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT). This study examined the impact of the use of computer technology in an effort to improve student learning in mathematics, reading, and science. Computers at the institution were used by all students for tutorials to prepare them for the FCAT and to obtain a high school diploma. The research questions for this study were as follows: 1. Is the education technology …

Instructional Leadership: New Responsibilities For A New Reality, Clara Fowler, Scott Walter

Staff Publications - University Libraries

Applies the concept of "instructional leadership" to the academic library context to articulate a new approach to thinking about the role of the "instruction coordinator" in libraries focusing more and more on their contributions to campus-wide initiatives in undergraduate education.

The Maine Learning Technology Initiative: Teacher, Student, And School Perspectives, Mid-Year Evaluation Report, David L. Silvernail Phd, Walter J. Harris Phd, Dawn M.M. Lane, Janet C. Fairman Phd, Paula B. Gravelle, Lori Smith, Katherine I. Sargent, Walter Mcintire

Education Technology

This report presents some early evaluation evidence on the effectiveness and impact of the implementation of the Maine Learning Technology Initiative (MLTI). The goal of the Year One evaluation, which is being conducted by the Maine Education Policy Research Institute (MEPRI), is to provide policymakers and practitioners with information that will assist them in determining whether or not, and to what degree, the vision and goals of the MLTI are being achieved. The Year One design is focusing primarily on the students who entered seventh grade in September 2002, and their teachers and schools.

The MEPRI evaluation team has focused …

The Road To Classroom Change, Thomas R. Guskey, Kent D. Peterson

Educational, School, and Counseling Psychology Faculty Publications

Before school-based decision making can change teaching and learning for the better, we must make some changes in the reform itself.