Education Commons^™

Project-Based Learning’S Effect On Students’ Understanding And Usage Of The Engineering Design Process, Allison Larsen

Masters of Arts in Education Action Research Papers

This action research study examined project-based learning’s effect on students’ understanding and usage of the Engineering Design Process. The study took place in an elementary school with seventy-two 5th grade participants. Students participated in three project-based learning activities throughout the study. The data was collected over a six week period with the use of pre- and post-assessments, teacher observations, an Engineering Design Process rubric, and student journaling. The results of the study showed that students’ understanding and usage of the Engineering Design Process increased throughout the study. In conclusion, a project-based learning environment supports a positive effect on students’ understanding …

The Effects Of Inquiry Based Practices On Students Problem Solving Competence, Antonio Kuklok

Masters of Arts in Education Action Research Papers

This action research project looked at the impacts that family dynamics and family resources have on student achievement and self-advocacy. It then went a step further by showing how inquiry-based strategies can give students with little family resources the tools to self-advocate and become academically successful. A specific six-step inquiry process was taught and implemented amongst 28 rural fifth grade students. The researcher utilized observations, assessments, and compared completed student work to Minnesota Academic Standards throughout the project period. After the students learned and implemented inquiry practices, their self-advocacy and academic achievement increased showing that these practices can affect students …

How Select Groups Of Preservice Science Teachers With Inquiry Orientations View Teaching And Learning Science Through Inquiry, Peggy Diana Ward

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Although hailed as a powerful form of instruction, in most teaching and learning contexts, inquiry-based instruction is fraught with ambiguous and conflicting definitions and descriptions. Yet little has been written about the experiences preservice science teacher have regarding their learning to teach science through inquiry. This project sought to understand how select preservice secondary science teachers enrolled in three UTeach programs in Arkansas conceptualize inquiry instruction and how they rationalize its value in a teaching and learning context. The three teacher education programs investigated in this study are adoption sites aligned with the UTeach Program in Austin, TX that distinguishes …

A Statistically Significant Determination From Pretest To Posttest In Knowledge Of Electrophoresis Concepts, Parker Megehee Nelson

Dissertations

The statistical significance from pretest to posttest of 109 high students constructing an electrophoresis chamber or not was explored. The students tested were from six intact biology classrooms. Three classes were treatment groups and three were control groups. The three biology teachers each taught a control and treatment group classroom. Except for building the electrophoresis chamber, students in both groups received identical instruction and testing. Pre- and posttest data was examined by means of a content valid test constructed by the researcher and biology teachers. In order to examine the statistical significance from pretest to posttest in knowledge of electrophoresis …

Sustainability Of A Long Term Professional Development Program, Christine E. Ries

Dissertations

Currently, in most school districts, the main form of teacher education comes from professional development (PD) that claims to improve teaching and student achievement. School districts and teachers spend time and money trying to make sure that they are providing the best quality education for their students. Yet, educators are looking for what the most effective form of PD should look like. Utilizing the methodology of a descriptive case study a long-term PD grant, called Science Alliance was evaluated to add to the research on PD and grant program efficacy. Twelve teachers that participated in the Science Alliance grant were …

The Experience Of Teaching Online Secondary Science, Cynthia Ann Clark

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The experience of teaching online secondary science was investigated through the lens of developmental phenomenography. Recorded phenomenographic interviews were conducted with thirteen secondary science teachers who were teaching online in two countries and four states. After analyzing the transcripts individually and as a whole, seven themes were identified: (1) Virtual Labs and Learning, (2) Student Learning and Factors Involved, (3) Communication and Instruction, (4) Teaching as Collaboration/Social Aspect, (5) Teaching and Learning as Assessment, (6) Curriculum Effects on Teaching and Learning, and (7) Online Structure Effects on Teaching and Learning. The structures of awareness of these seven themes formed the …

Culturally And Linguistically Responsive Instruction In An Rti Framework: Supporting Emergent Bilinguals In The Secondary Classroom, Lisa Auslander

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This dissertation investigates the impact of teacher team collaboration and planning around culturally and linguistically responsive instruction for emergent bilingual students in a secondary school setting supported by a targeted intervention system. To provide a context for the importance of this study, the dissertation begins by 1) including observations of both academic teacher team and guidance collaboration to understand the strategies used to plan instruction and guidance interventions for students drawing on existing research around professional learning communities and guidance structures; and 2) use of an existing observation protocol and frameworks to identify key practices and characteristics of culturally and …

Examination Of An Independent School’S Site-Based Summer Program, Susan W. Keogh

All Theses And Dissertations

This study examined the summer program offered by a pre-kindergarten through grade twelve independent school. Three levels of theory, individual, group, and organizational, were utilized to analyze the experiences of students and instructors. The variety of opportunities and instructional design elements, the intentional alignment to the traditional school year, collegial discussions connecting summer learning and the school year, and evidence of the school’s mission were examined.

Findings revealed a wide-range of educational experiences and the benefits of continuous learning that are evident the following school year. Class designs incorporated instructional elements supported by individual learning theories. Academic standards and expectations …

Questioning As A Civic Act: An Examination Of How Social Studies Teachers Define, Develop, And Cultivate Questions For Inquiry, Rebecca Glasgow Williams Mueller

Theses and Dissertations--Education Sciences

The present qualitative study used socio-cultural theory (Wertsch, 1998), pedagogical content knowledge (Shulman, 1987), and reflective practice (Schön, 1983) to examine how social studies teachers define and develop inquiry questions. Existing literature reflects a long tradition of equating inquiry with high quality social studies instruction (e.g., Barton & Levstik, 2004; Bruner, 1977; Griffin, 1942) and arguing that successful inquiry hinges on an engaging question (Barton & Levstik, 2004; Grant, 2003), but relatively little attention has been paid to how teachers characterize and develop questions for use with inquiry (Grant & Gradwell, 2010). The main research question was: How do high …