Education Commons^™

Examining Steam Implementation Through The Lens Of Organizational Learning, William Louis Grillo

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined STEAM implementation from the qualitative perspective of New Jersey K-12 school leaders and through the quantitative lens of organizational learning. Using a convergent parallel mixed methods design, sixteen school leaders were interviewed regarding their process of implementing the integrated learning framework known as STEAM. Simultaneously, an Organizational Learning Mechanism Questionnaire was distributed to the teaching faculty of participating districts. This study found that current K-12 school leaders were implementing STEAM with top down administrative support, emergent processes, standards focused curricula, and innovative means of marketing their programs. Significant differences were also found between K-8 and high school …

Academics And The Student Athlete: A Mixed Methods Study On The Role Of Athletics In The High School Educational Setting, Meredith Mcgee

Theses and Dissertations

Athletics are a strong component in the educational experiences of students. Without the proper social support, student athletes are presenting academically through a deficit lens (Cohen & Wills, 1985; Comeaux & Harrison, 2011; House, Umberson, & Landis, 1988; Sarason, Sarason,& Pierce, 1990). Coaches, teachers, and administrators must work collaboratively to enhance the education of student athletes. As a result, high schools can better prepare their student athletes for post-secondary life specifically through the significant relationships formed between athletic personnel and their athletes.

The purpose of this mixed methods study was to explore athletic administrators' and coaches' practices related to fostering …

What Can The Lit Lab Do For You? A Qualitative Analysis Of High School Literacy Lab Participants, Bridget P. Jaensch

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of the study is to document the changes in student progress, motivation, and achievement. The specific aim is to see what happens when students replace a traditional study hall with small group guided instruction in a literacy lab. Motivation profiles, goal setting, and reflection are all analyzed. The focus group of students demonstrated changes in how they viewed themselves as learners and in their academic endeavor to achieve goals. The implications for teaching in a literacy lab environment are discussed.

The Impact Of Blogging On The Facilitation Of Critical Literacy In Adolescent Students, Kelsey Wiemer

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore how using blogging with adolescent students could foster critical literacy. During the study, students researched an alternative perspective from World War II and completed six blog posts on a variety of topics over the course of four weeks. At the completion of the study, students' blog posts and comments revealed five different categories: (1) problematizing generally accepted texts or beliefs, (2) an interest in empowering silenced voices, (3) inquiry-driven discussion, (4) the incorporation of multiple perspectives (5) and changing attitudes towards blogging. Additionally, their writing demonstrated evidence of four different components of …

Blogging In Response To Literature: Reading, Writing, And Thinking Through The Digital Medium, Patrice Steller

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this research inquiry was to investigate what happens when eighth grade students participate in an online classroom blog in response to literature assigned for their English class. The study was conducted in an eighth grade classroom and involved 37 students. The qualitative research paradigm was followed and data collected included student surveys, blog writing samples, classroom writing samples, and observational field notes. Blog posts were analyzed to ascertain their impact on students' levels of thinking through writing. Blogging habits and topics were examined to determine impact of blogging on student interest in reading and writing and quality …

An Editing Framework Guiding Students Toward Self-Correcting Errors In Writing, Stacey Gasper

Theses and Dissertations

In order to have a successful school experience, a student must be able to write effectively. It is a skill that transfers to nearly every content area, especially once students reach the high school level. From our first year of education to our last, teachers stress the importance of working through the writing process. Unfortunately, for many students getting started proves a struggle to organize ideas, developing those ideas is exhausting, and by the time they complete a draft they want to turn it in without looking back. Furthermore, struggling writers often do not know where to begin analyzing their …

Organization Strategies To Enhance Math Performance Of High School Students With Attention Deficit Disorders, Martina Wilkerson

Theses and Dissertations

Will the use of organizational strategies and tools improve overall academic performance for students with attention deficit disorders in a high school resource room math setting? The student participants in this study were taught to use organizational strategies and tools including an assignment completion strategy, a task analysis, and notebook checks to improve their classroom participation, assignment completion, and assessment scores. The overall results indicate that the students slightly improved their academic performance upon the implementation of organizational strategies and tools. Of the data reported, 37% of the students with ADHD and 40% of students without ADHD showed improvement because …

An Investigation Of The Use Of The Ipad And Textbooks On The Achievement Of Students With Special Needs In Algebra, Ahmet Kilic

Theses and Dissertations

Educational leaders and policy-makers assume that replacing the technological tools currently used in schools with new, portable ones will result in widespread usage of the device for educational purposes by students and teacher, and an increase in student achievement. This study examines these assumptions with twenty students taking an Algebra-2 course in a northern New Jersey charter school. The mixed methodology used in this study included classroom observations and assessments, surveys for both students and teachers, and interviews with parents through home visits. Findings show that iPad integration in an Algebra-2 class led to a slight increase in student achievement, …

The Effect Of Choice On The Behavior Of Off Task High School Students In An Alternative School Setting, Laura Campbell

Theses and Dissertations

This study was done to examine the effect of choice on off task behaviors in high school students attending an alternative school. The participants were from various backgrounds, ability levels, and presence of disabilities. The students were observed performing three target behaviors; specifically talking off topic, being out of a seat needlessly, and being out of the classroom. This was initiated during a baseline observation period, and again over a five day period after being introduced to the choice process. The alternative activities from which they chose were lesson extensions, educational puzzles or reading material, or classroom jobs. This was …

Classroom Management: A Study In Leadership, Theory, And Implementation, Brian Latwis

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to review the literature, identify components of a classroom management plan, and implement the research into practice to study the effects of implementing a classroom management plan. There will be three action research cycles that drive this case study. The case study starts by studying the effects of implementing a classroom management plan with 18 teachers in Generic Township High School. Utilizing the research, key components have been identified: procedures, rules, hierarchy of negative consequences, and the importance of positive reinforcement and communication home. This study is both qualitative and quantitative in nature. Qualitatively, …

What's In A Choice? A Study In How Choice In Assignment Affects Student Completion Of Assignments, Christopher J. Croge

Theses and Dissertations

In this action research project, the effects of giving students a choice in their assignments on students' intrinsic motivation were measured. This was done by giving the students an increasing amount of choices for their summative assessment following the end of each of five units studied in World History. Analysis of the data showed that there was some positive correlation between the amount of choices and the likelihood that students completed the assignments. While this correlation was present, it may be possible that other factors influenced this increase in student completion of assignments. These factors include when during the grading …

Active Student Engagement By Using Cooperative Learning Strategies, Austin Martinez

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore possible solutions to student interaction and product quality in a ninth grade English class by using strategies in cooperative learning. Reciprocal learning, jigsaw, and skills practice were used to promote student interaction and cooperation during a lesson on William Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet." The data reveals that the three student participants have the skills necessary to succeed and excel in cooperative learning strategies, and previous student achievements may not necessarily indicate an ability or inability to master a cooperative learning activity. Implications for using cooperative learning strategies in the classroom are discussed.

What Happens To Student Engagement And Understanding Of Chemistry When Cross-Curricular Activities And Assignments Are Used In An Honors Chemistry Class?, Heather L. Keller

Theses and Dissertations

The focus of this action research study was to determine if cross-curricular learning strategies could be used in a chemistry class to increase both student engagement and understanding of chemistry content. Two strategies were implemented in an honors chemistry course of sophomores and juniors. Participants were chosen on a voluntary basis, those students who chose not to participate still needed to complete the activities, however, their grades and responses were not included in the data. Participating students were required to complete a consent form and obtain parental permission. Students completed a creative writing activity and a kinesthetic activity in which …

The Implementation Of The Exit Slip Strategy To Examine The Advancement Of Paraphrasing And Summarizing Shakespearean Text, Andrea M. Hawn

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this action research study was to help mediate areas of deficiency that were identified in the essay and composition writing of a group of freshman Honors' students. During this study, students were provided with specific strategies to interpret texts so they could begin to understand the author's intended message to the audience. They could then translate those understandings into their written work. Specifically, the exit slip strategy was implemented to help develop students' summarization and paraphrasing skills. Teacher feedback was also integrated onto the learning process to help reinforce and refine the skill development process. The findings …

Using Theatre Education As A Medium For Bullying Prevention, Amanda N. Pioppi

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to educate high school students about bullying prevention through the use of theatre education. A unit was designed to enhance student discussion and interpretation of the issue. The use of student journals, discussions, and student work artifacts were used as data sources for this action research study. Along with this, students rehearsed and produced a play, Bang, Bang, You're Dead, designed to create prevention awareness. The Advanced Acting class, eighteen junior and senior level high school students, went through a continuum of change during the study. There was a visible change in their …

Primary Sources And Their Effects On Student Interest, Kevin T. Foster

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of primary sources on the interest levels of three Honors classes during my Student Teaching. I wanted to see if my students would enjoy the ten primary sources I introduced to them. The study was conducted over a month's time. Data was collected using hundreds of surveys, over sixty questionnaires, fifteen interviews, and anecdotal notes to determine my seventy-five students' interest in the primary sources I chose for their classes. After analyzing the written data, I concluded that my students overwhelmingly enjoyed the primary sources we read and analyzed together. …

Show Me You Care, Denise Calore

Theses and Dissertations

Although caring in the classroom has been a widely researched topic in education, the impact it has on student behavior is one aspect of caring that has been overlooked, especially at the secondary level. This study's main focus was to investigate if modeling caring behavior can correct negative student behavior, such as being disruptive in class, and reinforce caring behavior amongst classmates. Through observation and various caring activities, I was able to uncover student perspectives of caring, how students define a caring teacher, and a positive impact of my caring actions on student behavior.

Teacher And Student Attitudes Towards Multicultural Issues, Nathan Taraska

Theses and Dissertations

The purposes of this research were to (a) measure the multicultural attitudes of teachers in a secondary setting, grades 9-12 (n=6); (b) measure the multicultural attitudes of the students in those teachers' classes (n=92); and (c) determine whether these samples of students and teachers have statistically similar multicultural attitudes that indicate a positive relationship. Teachers and students demonstrated largely positive attitudes towards multicultural issues. A series of t-tests revealed the attitudes of the two groups were statistically similar on 12 of the 13 questionnaire items regarding multicultural issues. Implications for schools, teachers, and multicultural education in …

An Investigation Of The Tools And Strategies Used To Present Multiple Perspectives In The Classroom, Christopher P. Madden

Theses and Dissertations

The research question for this project is what are the tools and strategies teachers are using to present multiple perspectives to their students? The data sources for this research included classroom observations, teacher interviews, student questionnaires, and document analysis. Four different teachers were interviewed and had their classes observed. There were a total of 16 observations containing detailed field notes. Twenty-seven students filled out the questionnaire. Documents used in the classroom as tools were collected and analyzed for this research. Four main strategies for presenting multiple perspectives in the classroom were found: open discussion, current events, alternative texts, and movies …

Teacher Management Of Homophobia And Homosexuality In High Schools, Sarah Elizabeth Kiyak

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this research project was to examine ways in which high school teachers manage issues of homophobia and homosexuality in high schools. Surveys were distributed to teachers in one southern New Jersey high school in order to measure the frequency of tolerance and adherence to policy regarding homosexual issues of students. The survey, constructed of eleven forced response questions using a Likert scale and one open-ended question, was the instrument utilized in this research project. After the completed surveys were returned, the results were tallied and frequency tables were used to analyze the results. The open-ended questions were …

A Study Of The Female Formation Of Identity During The High School Years: A Qualitative Analysis, Elisabeth C. Rigney

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this research project was to examine the factors that influence and affect identity formation by female adolescents during the high school years. Group discussion sessions were held for a sample size of 6 participants that introduced certain topics that were deemed relevant to adolescent females' identity formation. Through the group discussions, participants demonstrated that these topics, including body image, family pressure, and relationships, were inherent to the ways they form identity during the high school years. Upon completion of the data collection, the discussion sessions were coded for each topic and then divided by those responses deemed …

The Use Of The Socratic Method In A Contemporary High School Classroom In Developing Problem-Solving, Critical Thinking, And Decision Making Skills, Anna Schneider Muessig

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this action research was to attempt to use a modified approach to the Socratic method in a contemporary high school classroom as a means of developing problem-solving, critical thinking, and decision-making skills in high school students. The participants in the study were 16 male students and 13 female students from two sections of an eleventh grade Honors English class at a suburban high school in southern New Jersey. These students were selected as a population of convenience during the researcher's Clinical Internship II experience. As a part of regular classroom instruction, the researcher employed a modified form …

Social Studies And The Internet, Kristen Heider

Theses and Dissertations

This study sought to address two primary questions: (1) to determine if students' attitudes towards using the Internet as a resource changed as a result of their applying a web evaluation guide, and (2) to determine if the quality of students' research products improved as a result of web evaluation lessons. The ninth grade, world history students' familiarity and prior use of the Internet with research projects was assessed through a pre-survey as well as the review of their prior research papers and projects. Finally, taking into consideration progress and curriculum, research projects were assigned individually, allowing class time in …

Spelling Attitudes And Abilities Of Secondary Students, Michael C. Porter

Theses and Dissertations

The purposes of this study were to a) gauge the attitudes of a group of high school seniors (n = 211) about the importance of spelling, which strategies they use to solve spelling problems, and the adequacy of spelling instruction at the high school level; b) assess the same group of seniors according to Ganske's developmental levels of spelling; and c) gauge the attitudes of high school language arts teachers in the same school (n = 16) about the importance of spelling and the adequacy of spelling instruction at the high school level, and to determine their spelling …

An Exploratory Study On The Impact Of Alternative Approaches To The Treatment Of Bullying At The Middle/High School Level In A Southern New Jersey Public School District, Lynda L. Hinkle

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this paper is to explore, in two separate studies, the impact of one comprehensive treatment and one curricular treatment on bullying behaviors within the context of a southern New Jersey school district. In the first study, 1280 middle school students were surveyed in the beginning of the school year and again at the end, after comprehensive treatment methods were applied. In the second study, a single high school writing class was observed both before and after the teaching of an anti-bullying curriculum. The first study showed an increase of students reporting that they were victims of bullying …

The Multiple Dimensions Of Negative Attitudes Toward School Among Students In An Urban High School Environment, Scott W. Revell

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to identify the sources of negative attitudes in a high school environment through interviews and journal writing as a basis for qualitative data. A sample of convenience was chosen that included six students with varied characteristics of interest for the study. Students were asked to respond to journal prompts at 3-day intervals and were interviewed for 25 minutes regarding their attitude toward school. Sources identified in this study to be contributors to a negative attitude toward school are incompatible teachers and teaching style, failure to have basic needs of the students met, and the …

The Effect Of Student Journals On Achievement In And Attitudes Toward Science, Holly Cowell

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this action research project was to determine if: (a) writing in student journals affected the grades of my students, and (b) if student attitudes were affected by writing in journals and receiving teacher feedback. The research was conducted during the third semester at Triton Regional High School with a total of 49 tenth-grade students enrolled in two Laboratory Biology classes. Students in one class wrote in journals about teacher-posed topics for five minutes on average of once per week. The topics were written to encourage personalization of learning and further interaction with science. An attitude survey was …

Instituting Issue-Based Civics In The 11th Grade Classroom, Nicholas J. Diblasi, Carissa Larkin

Theses and Dissertations

There were several goals of this study. The first goal of this study was to identify if issue-based civics would produce any difference in a student's attitude for and appreciation in civics. The second goal was to identify if issue-based civics would produce any difference in a student's comprehension levels in civics. The last of these goals was to identify if the school a student attended had any impact on their attitude toward and appreciation of civics and comprehension levels in civics. The study was conducted on a sample of 70 11th grade students enrolled in American History II college …

Redefining High School American Literature In A Diverse Nation, Nancy M. Vasquez

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this qualitative study was to evaluate why high school students in America study American literature that includes a majority of writers of white western European descent and excludes writers of multicultural backgrounds. This study also analyzed if exposure to works by multicultural writers changes students' perceptions of what constitutes American literature. The participants included 3 classes of American literature students (N=44) and American literature teachers (N=6) in a predominantly white high school. The study included a combination of textbook content analysis, teacher interviews, and an intervention consisting of a Latino literature unit taught to student participants. Key …

The Effect Of Teacher Intervention, Role Modeling, And A Gender-Balanced Bulletin Board Design On 10th Grade Male Students' Writing Apprehension, Laurie Bartolomeo

Theses and Dissertations

The first goal of this study was to identify any preexisting differences in the levels of writing apprehension between males and females in a sample of 85 10th grade high school students enrolled in English classes available during a spring 2002 student teaching placement. An adapted form of John A. Daly and Michael D. Miller's (1975) Likert-scaled Writing Apprehension Measure was used to assess the participants' levels of apprehension. Results of the first survey revealed that male participants did display a higher level of writing apprehension but the difference did not reach a level of statistical significance (p < .05). The second phase of the study involved a 4-month treatment period that included teacher intervention, role modeling, and a gender-balanced bulletin board design in an attempt to make a positive change in the male students' levels of writing apprehension. The same survey was administered to 36 males and 36 females following treatment to determine if any change occurred. A two-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) revealed there was no statistically significant effect of treatment on either the male or female participants (p < .05); however, a decrease in the levels of writing apprehension was seen in the means of the scores across all groups.