Education Commons^™

Writing In The Math Classroom In Order To Increase The Academic Proficiency In English Language Learners, Daniel Bahnaman

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects

learners. These students specifically struggle with mathematics, as it relies heavily on specific academic language that is constantly being scaffolded. Research has shown that writing in the mathematics classroom can assist English language learners develop academic vocabulary and therefore increase proficiency. This capstone project focuses on the research question: How can writing in the math classroom increase the academic language and proficiency in a classroom of 80% English language learners? The project gives an introduction into implementing writing in the middle school math classroom by providing a one-week introduction to journaling, a two-week eighth-grade curriculum with added writing pieces, and …

Dawn Of The Undead Classroom: Pop-Culture In The First-Year Composition Classroom, Sierra A. Ellison

English (MA) Theses

Supplemented by the findings of her IRB certified research project, Sierra A. Ellison delves into the positive effects pop culture and genre have on the first-year composition classroom, exploring how engaging students through a common discourse that is relatable and comfortable can aid in their writing and composition progression. She explains how teaching under a framework such as the undead and examining these types of thematic material can engage students in the material and give students the space to open up about key issues like race, sex, politics, morality, and consumerism that they might be reluctant to discuss otherwise.

Engaging Middle School Emergent Bilinguals In Language Awareness: A Practitioner Researcher Study, Carol Lickenbrock

Dissertations

This practitioner research study (Cochran-Smith & Lytle, 2009) traced the journey toward critical literacy of a group of seven emergent bilinguals and me, their teacher, over the course of a four-month unit on argument as part of our English for Speakers of Other Languages 3 (ESOL3) class. Many of these students, like many emergent bilinguals in the United States, had been disempowered because they had not had access to the academic texts of school. As part of this research, students worked with tools of Systemic Functional Linguistics (SFL) to analyze the interpersonal, ideational and textual metafunctions of argumentation in lessons …

Text-Influenced Expressions Of Understanding: Differences In Kindergartners’ Discourse And Written Retellings Of Traditional And Digital Texts During Buddy Reading, Julie Parrish

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Buddy reading a text is a collaborative act that typically generates discourse that provides researchers with a glimpse of the comprehending taking place. However, in recent years, the infusion of technology in classrooms has resulted in many traditional texts being replaced by digital versions. Thus, this qualitative case study examined the spoken and written discourse of 12 kindergartners (6 dyads) as they buddy read a traditional and digital text.

Drawing upon two distinct lenses—sociocultural and comprehension signifier—video recordings, transcriptions, and written retellings were analyzed. Specifically, process coding and in vivo coding were used to construct categories and uncover sociocultural patterns …

Improving Writing Skills Through The Use Of Morning Work In The Second-Grade Classroom, Catherine Nelson-Dittmann

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects

In an effort to impact second-grade student writing, the vehicle of morning work was utilized as a pre-existing opportunity to incorporate research-based best practices in writing. To frame this project, the capstone question was asked, “How can morning work be used to improve second-grade student writing skills?” This capstone set out to identify the practices that would yield the best results in a small amount of time and found that authentic, contextual writing experiences would support this goal. While explicit skill instruction is important, authentic writing experiences allow students to, not only practice writing, but also understand and use grammar, …

Finding A Place In Learning: Facilitating Place-Based Writing In The Secondary Classroom, Ella Rausch

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects

How can teachers facilitate place-based writing that improves the writing and research skills of high school students? This project contains a facilitation guide for an expeditionary experience that utilizes place-based writing for secondary students. Research has shown the significant benefits of this learning model for high school students and its far reaching effects beyond writing skills. Project-based learning is used as the foundation for the guide, emphasizing cross-curricular learning experiences and student voice and choice to provide authentic learning experiences. The guide is designed to support teachers as they lead students through individual projects related to a place they visit …

Helping Secondary El Students Become More Effective Writers, Chanda Mulligan

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects

Mulligan, C. Helping Secondary EL Students Become More Effective Writers (2020) Secondary EL students do not consistently have access to equitable writing instruction. Students should expect that teachers are delivering writing instruction that will enable them to write successfully for academic and professional purposes. This capstone sought to answer the question: How can teachers of EL learners ensure that students utilize their entire linguistic repertoire to access the linguistic structures they need in order to communicate effectively for academic tasks? The following themes emerged in the literature reviewed: academic language and systemic functional linguistics, writing and grammar instruction for ELs, …

Conferring With Elementary Students To Enhance Literacy Skills, Kelsey Patricelli

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects

The research question addressed in this project was, how does conferring improve the literacy skills of elementary students? The author describes the process of researching and creating a professional development for the purposes of informing educators of conferring, demonstrating its benefits, and modeling how to best implement it into their educational spaces. Research around conferring, specifically by Serravallo (2019), Allen (2009) and Calkins (2013) helped break down the three aspects of conferring - assessment, individualized instruction and goal setting. These separate components were then broken down to help determine the benefits conferring has on the literacy growth of students. This …

Utilizing Mentor Texts In Elementary Literacy Instruction, Allie Duellman

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects

The research question addressed in this project was, how can elementary teachers utilize mentor texts in elementary literacy instruction? This project documents how teachers can select mentor texts and utilize them in literacy instruction. The literature review focused on five main topics. These topics were, the definition of mentor texts, selecting mentor texts, role of mentor texts, student engagement with mentor texts, and student achievement with mentor texts. Additionally, research (Bates & Morgan, 2018) was done on creating professional developments. The literature review showed that utilizing mentor texts is a successful way to teach young writers. In addition, it showed …

Going Digital With Peer Review: Using Action Research To Explore The Effect Of Digital Peer Review On Student Writing Composition And Student Attitude In A Rural Primary School, Kemberly Jean Owens

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this action research was to explore the use of peer review on student writing composition and student attitudes toward writing for third grade students at Little Rural Primary School. This study focused on two research questions. The first research question explored how and to what extent the use of digital peer review effects student writing composition. The second research question explored how and to what extent digital peer review effects student attitudes toward writing. The study took place in the third and fourth grade gifted and talented classroom at Little Rural Primary School in South Carolina and …

An Exploratory Study Of The Effects Of A Technology-Based Graphic Organizer And 1:1 Chromebooks On The Persuasive Writing Of Third-Grade Students, Kathy L. Caldwell

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this qualitative action research was to determine the effectiveness of a technology-based graphic organizer on student achievement, engagement, and motivation in writing. The study explored the usefulness of incorporating a mindmapping program, using Chromebooks to assist students when brainstorming ideas for a persuasive essay. Further, this study examined third-grade English language arts students’ perceptions of the use of technology to write persuasive essays using a specific writing prompt.

The teacher-researcher collected and recorded data on eight third-grade students over seven days. To identify and validate the study’s findings, field notes, student interviews, student reflective digital journals, surveys, …

Potential Roles Of Speech-Language Pathologists In Advancing Early Intervention And Prevention Within A Multi-Tiered System Of Supports (Mtss) Framework, Meaghan A. Mckenna

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Multi-tiered system of supports (MTSS) is a framework that promotes school improvement through tiered deployment of research-based academic and behavioral practices. MTSS employs a systems approach whereby data-based problem solving integrates effective assessment and instruction designed to meet the academic, behavioral, and social emotional needs of all students. Many speech-language pathologists (SLPs) are interested in better understanding their role within MTSS and others have a desire to lead efforts at their school site or the district level, but are unsure of where to begin. This dissertation includes three papers that explore potential roles and responsibilities of SLPs within a multi-tiered …

Rethinking Gaming & Representation Within Digital Pedagogy: An Instructor’S Guide, Anthony Wheeler

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This work fully analyzes the creation process and implementation of a deeply-structured social commentary in the form of a digital interactive-fiction, created in the open software known as Twine. My co-developer, Raven Gomez, and I created a game that explores the challenges of navigating spaces within higher education as someone who identifies as something considered to be “other” by the standards of the common Western curriculum. Once the infrastructure of the product itself is outlined, this work follows students in an English Composition I course throughout their experiences creating digital interactive-fiction games based on pivotal moments in their lives that …

Implementing Writers’ Workshop Into The Special Education Classroom, Taylor Denning

Masters of Education in Teaching and Learning

Writers’ Workshop has developed prominence as a method towards providing authentic writing experiences. The purpose of this study was to determine what happens to student perceptions and quantity of writing when Writers’ Workshop is implemented into a special education setting. This study took place in a self-contained special education classroom of third-, fourth-, and fifth-graders. Data was collected through focus group interviews with the teachers, focus groups with two students from every grade, perception surveys, and writing samples.

Surveys and focus group interviews were completed before and after the implementation. Writing samples were collected at the beginning, middle, and end …

Cultivating A Writer’S Identity: The Effect Of Writing Workshop On Writing Proficiency And Confidence In An Intermediate Montessori Classroom, Cora Wong

Masters of Arts in Education Action Research Papers

This action research investigated the effect of Writing Workshop on the writing proficiency and confidence of intermediate Montessori students. The study took place in a public community school of a major Canadian city with 24 participants of a grade 4, 5, and 6 Montessori classroom. Research was conducted over a six-week period and implemented Calkins, Ochs, and Luick’s (2017) Up the Ladder Writing Workshop Narrative Unit. Data was collected using writing samples scored by adapted 6+1 Traits of Writing Rubrics and students’ self-assessed scores using adapted 6+1 Traits of Writing Student Rubrics, adapted Bottomley et al.’s (1997/1998) Writer Self-Perception Scales, …

Implementing Writing In Content Areas: Teachers’ Perceptions As Writing Instructors, Matthew Davis Shemwell

Theses and Dissertations

Teachers across content areas have a shared responsibility to incorporate writing instruction into the curriculum; however, analysis of needs assessment survey data collected during Striving Readers Comprehensive Literacy grant application in 2014 revealed that the faculty of the participating high school did not embrace writing instruction responsibility. The purpose of the study was to investigate teachers’ perceptions, confidence, and use of writing instructional strategies throughout content areas at the conclusion of implementation of the five-year grant. The researcher conducted an explanatory sequential mixed methods design that utilized a survey, interviews, and lesson plan document analysis. The survey sample consisted of …

Transgender College Students In The English Composition Classroom In The Rocky Mountains, Tracey Williams

Dissertations

Transgender students face challenging and unique experiences in academic classrooms on college campuses. This qualitative study, which used queer and transgender theory, sought to examine the realities of transgender students’ experiences within the English Composition classroom in the Rocky Mountains. English Composition is a class nearly every undergraduate student must take, no matter their major. It acts as a microcosm of the college population. Composition classes are generally small (20-25 students), offering a more intimate setting than other general education classes in college. Additionally, personal writing is expected, as is sharing work with classmates for peer-review sessions. Within this context …

Teachers' Sensemaking: Middle School And High School Language Arts Grading And Assessing Practices For Writing, Lana Michele Cook

Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative case study will examine how middle and high school language arts teachers in a single school district make sense of their grading practices. This paper explores how Language Arts teachers at different grade levels may be faced with a variety of contextual factors that influence their grading practices. In order to do justice to this topic, a literature review will situate and contextualize writing instruction, learning standards, and assessments. Using a qualitative single case study design, this study will present the findings from nineteen in-depth teacher interviews, document analysis, and field notes.

Using The Process Approach To Create An Effective And Efficient Secondary Writing Curriculum For Students And Teachers, Adam Koehler

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects

The process approach to writing instruction has become widely used; however, writing assessment practices that emphasize summative feedback may not utilize the strengths of the process approach to instruction. This capstone project answers the question: How can writing instruction and assessment practices be used to create an effective and efficient writing curriculum? The result of the research shows that the instruction methods of specific writing strategies, mentor text analysis, collaborative writing, and sentence combination can be effectively integrated. Research-informed curricula were developed with an emphasis on student-centered formative assessment practices such as writing conferences and peer/self-assessment. These practices effectively support …

Reorienting Writing In The 21st-Century Classroom: A Mixed Methods Study Of High School Students' Experiences Using Digital Writing Tools To Support The Writing Process, Kay Sellers

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this action research study was to describe students’ experiences using digital writing tools to support the different stages of the writing process in Honors-level English classes at a large suburban public high school in the southeastern United States. Reports from the writing section of the Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT) reveal that writing scores for college-bound seniors declined by 15 points between 2005 and 2016. Even though students use social media tools for daily communication, some studies suggest students fail to make the connection between digital tools they use every day and the potential use of digital tools …

The Magic Of Teaching And Assessing Writ [ Rid ] Ing, Kristina Koehler

Theses and Dissertations

Theories of hermeneutics (Moss) and complementarity (Broad and Boyd) claim that human understandings deepen when inquiries are informed by multiple perspectives. This thesis renders two distinct but related pedagogical enterprises—the teaching of writing and the teaching of horseback riding—reciprocally illuminating and complicating. As a result, the Elbovian “magic” of teaching, assessing, writing, and riding has come to light: the delicate humanity and intimacy of our work in both “communities of practice” (Star). My argument calls teachers to embrace this “magic” in our classrooms by addressing and normalizing fears that both we and our students experience. Doing so is essential to …

Culturally Familiar Texts To Improve Reading And Writing Outcomes For High School English Language Learners: An Explanatory Sequential Mixed Methods Study, Taryn Courtney Robertson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Research suggests that culturally relevant pedagogical strategies are essential for improving culturally and linguistically diverse student achievement. However, there is little research about which specific strategies provide the largest impacts. And there is even less research on which strategies help LatinX English Language Learners achieve academic success in the areas of reading and writing. The purpose of this study was to determine the impact of utilizing culturally familiar text, as compared to culturally unfamiliar text, on reading comprehension and summary writing outcomes for secondary LatinX ELL students. This study sought to determine if there were statistically significant differences in reading …

Named But Not Known: Teaching And Assessing The Research-Writing Process, Ruth Boeder

Wayne State University Dissertations

In lived experience, the two processes of secondary research and writing overlap and intertwine interminably, creating an overarching complex system as research becomes expressed in writing and writing generates new research. This classroom study explores the two processes as one—the research-writing process—through coding of student journal responses and assessment of student research papers. Analysis reveals students to be thoughtful but not yet as nuanced in their descriptions of their research process as much be desired. They more frequently discuss writing with weaknesses in their research process than with research strengths. Further findings indicate that although it is difficult to assess …

Perceptions Of English Teachers About Professional Development For Evidence-Based Writing Practices, Julie Nicole Bollich

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Writing teachers in a southern school district have not consistently implemented evidence-based practices (EBPs) in writing instruction as indicated by students not meeting proficiency levels on state and campus writing assessments. Despite professional development (PD) provided to writing teachers, writing assessment scores remained lower than state level scores between 2012 and 2019 at the target campus. Teachers’ perceptions of their competence related to the implementation of writing strategies in the classroom, their perceptions of how district and campus PD supported their skill development, and their efficacy in designing and implementing lesson plans focused on teaching writing strategies were explored in …

Creating A Sentence Frame Toolkit Based On Third Grade Writing Standards To Support The Writing Instruction Of Spanish-Speaking English Learners, Tanisha J. Rosa Le Bron

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Third grade general education teachers, particularly in Florida, will teach English learners (ELs) in their classroom who must participate in their English Language Arts writing classes at roughly the same pace as native English speakers in order to perform grade-level, standards-based writing tasks. For this reason, general education teachers must be equipped with helpful, research-based resources to support the ELs to become equally successful in writing instruction as their native-speaking peers. This thesis explored the use of sentence frames for improving the English skills of ELs as they start to understand and use the syntax of Standard English. As a …