Education Commons^™

Approaches To Narrative Instruction For Second Language Learners, Mathew Peters

MA TESOL Collection

Narratives have reemerged as a dominant form of rhetoric over the last fifty years. This dominant use of narrative discourse has only increased with the rise of social media. Walther Fisher (1987) proposed the narrative paradigm as a unifying theory of human communication. His major claim is that people are inherently storytellers and that people use a narrative rationality and a logic of good reasons to inform their beliefs, values, and actions. This paper utilizes his theories, along with recent findings in neuroscience, to establish an argument for greater inclusion of narratives into second language teaching. Narratives can have a …

Valuing Children’S Natural Thinking In The Classroom, Supriya Rawal

Art of Teaching Thesis - Written

This thesis discusses the importance of valuing children’s natural thinking in the classroom. Our education places a significant emphasis on literacy and math and recognizes human capacity mostly just through performance on standardized assessments in these two fields of study. But human capacity is much more than just math and literacy. Moreover, even math and literacy are taught in a very process-oriented, rote fact-based curriculum that does not allow children to learn through their own natural way of thinking. This contrived way of thinking and limited support for creative avenues leads to a very narrow definition of success, a fixed …

Developing Creativity In The Seventh-Grade Art Classroom, Zachary Dane Wallerius

Masters Theses

This thesis describes a methodology for developing artistic creativity in seventh-grade students through the implementation of a curriculum that fosters authentic engagement with the creative process. In it I explore how student’s waning interest in the arts through middle school despite the value of creative expression for adolescents can be addressed. The research in this paper explores relevant aspects of artistic creativity as well as the psychological needs that must be met in order for students to successfully engage in a creative practice. The paper makes recommendations for how to foster common traits of creative people and proposes how behavior …

The Emerging Science Of Wellness In The College Writing Curriculum, Peggy Suzuki

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation argues that the college writing curriculum – and indeed any educational program---would benefit from an emphasis on human wellness and the arts. Wellness consists of one’s emotional, social, spiritual, physical, intellectual, and vocational well-being. Additionally, students’ environmental circumstances, like home life, finances, diet, exercise, and work obligations play a huge role in balancing personal health, especially in marginalized communities. Since one’s physiological and psychological connection impacts one’s identity and health, improving writing in the classroom requires holistic and creative approaches for rewiring individual thinking. I draw from positive psychology, where concepts like complex optimism and positive emotions nurture …

An Analysis Of The Complex Thinking Requirements Of The Terranova And Iowa Practice Tests In English/Language Arts For Grade 8: A Tale Of Two Tests, Armand Lamberti

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

ABSTRACT

The importance of higher-order thinking, 21^st-Century Skills, and standardized testing are important issues in education. TerraNova and IOWA tests are widely used to assess students’ academic competence. The publishers of the TerraNova and IOWA tests claim that their assessment instruments challenge students to employ higher-order thinking skills. This study sought to examine and describe ways in which the language found in the TerraNova and IOWA English/Language Arts practice tests compared with the language that promotes higher-order thinking found in the literature. A convergent, parallel mixed-methods study with qualitative and quantitative content analysis methods was conducted to (a) …

Fostering Creative Thinking Skills In Young Children Using Design Thinking Challenges, Tom R. Gannon

Creativity and Change Leadership Graduate Student Master's Projects

For this master’s project I developed a set of resources (guidebook, videos, and presentation deck) which provide child development professionals with a framework and set of skills to facilitate design thinking challenges (open-ended problem-solving activities based on design thinking’s phases of: creating empathy, problem identification, ideation, prototyping, and idea testing) with preschool age children. The centerpiece of the project is the guide book titled Save the Gingerbread Man: Understanding & Supporting Creative Thinking Skills in Preschoolers. The videos are interviews with preschool age children in a series called From the Experts. The presentation deck incorporates can include the …

Nurse Educators Fostering Critical Thinking In First-Year Students In An Associate Degree Nursing Program, Pamela Rogers

CUP Ed.D. Dissertations

Nurse educators are required to prepare students with the CT skills to solve complex problems, make sound clinical judgments, and decisions in nursing practice. This study explored the strategies used by nurse educators to foster critical thinking in nursing education for first-year nursing students in a community college. The research questions of this study were aligned with Bloom’s revised taxonomy, based on the work of Anderson et al. (2001) and Krathwohl (2002), who focused on the learner’s cognitive processes that transfer knowledge to a higher level of thinking. The selected method was a qualitative methodology with a phenomenological design. The …

Creative Self-Efficacy: Students In General Education, With Learning Disabilities, And With Gifts And Talents, Jennifer Elaine Smith

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Creative self-efficacy is the belief in one’s own ability to be creative. It is a component of creativity and is vital for future success. Within the construct of creative thinking, four areas of creative thinking (i.e., fluency, flexibility, elaboration, and originality) have been suggested.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the perception of creative self-efficacy in third, fourth, and fifth grade students in general education, with learning disabilities, and with gifts and talents in terms of fluency, flexibility, elaboration, and originality. Along with educational sub-type and grade level, an exploration of the relationship of gender and ethnicity were …

Estrategias Pedagógicas Para El Desarrollo Del Pensamiento Crítico Y Creativo A Través Del Arte, María Cristina Borrero Hermida

Doctorado en Educación y Sociedad

Este trabajo de investigación representa una mirada analítica, crítica y propositiva sobre la posibilidad de construir metodologías pedagógicas para el desarrollo del pensamiento crítico y creativo de los estudiantes, desde el saber propio de la educación artística, con un acento especial colocado en la incorporación de las TIC en la educación básica. Es una investigación que describe e interpreta las particularidades de un modelo pedagógico en educación básica y media en el cual el arte es un componente esencial del proceso educativo para desarrollar la capacidad imaginativa, simbólica y transformadora con fundamentos en los lenguajes artísticos en el teatro, la …

The Creative Process : Gathering For Meaning, Charity Appell Mcnabb

Masters Theses

The creative process of visual artists is not a well-understood methodology for intellectual inquiry. In particular, there are amorphous and individual aspects of it that defy narrow categorization. These aspects, like the gathering and associating labors, which vary from artist to artist, are nonetheless fundamental to our practices. The author investigates how the creative process has been defined and how the creative process is being used outside the traditional artistic context. Artists exist in a space where categories and definitions can be abandoned, where thought is advanced through the act of making, where worldviews can be imagined, where apparent contradictions …

Bringing The Outside In: Connecting Literacy Practices In A Layered, Technologically-Driven Seventh Grade Honors English Curriculum, Geneva L. Scully

Wayne State University Dissertations

As technology consumes our society today, it was one intention of this study to examine whether purposeful curriculum design that both scaffolded and layered technological tools into a unit of study in a seventh grade honors English classroom would lead to more critical and creative thinking. Through a qualitative design, case study analysis of three students whose experiences demonstrated how students were able to achieve increased levels of critical thinking was described. Another intention of this study was to examine whether or not students connected their in-school and out-of-school literacies through this experience in a more meaningful way as contributors …

Online Student Discussions In A Blended Learning Classroom: Reconciling Conflicts Between A Flipped Instruction Model And Reform-Based Mathematics, Lewis L. Young

Theses and Dissertations

Two ideas are prevalent in teacher professional development today. Teachers are finding new and innovative ways to incorporate technology into their classroom. The use of video and social media is increasing. One type of pedagogy that has emerged among the blended learning pedagogies is flipped instruction, where students participate in some of the instruction outside of the classroom. Another prevalent idea is the focus on inquiry learning and reform-based mathematics instruction. This pedagogy adheres to the idea that students can use their problem solving skills to understand complex mathematics. This qualitative content analysis outlines how one researcher sought to find …

My Brain Wakes Up, Nicole Mcdonough

Graduate Student Independent Studies

An original work of fiction designed to open the conversation between students and teachers about the striking contrasts and innate beauty in how differently each of our brains are made. It is at once a work of fiction, an interview of children, an opportunity for personal reflection, and an invitation for all learners to honor our unique creativity.

Collaborative And Creative Thinking Skill Development Through The Design Of Wearable Technologies, Laurie E. Korte

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Skills inherent in the creative thinking process such as reflecting and collaborating are needed for success in many careers. However, a focus on standardized testing in K-12 schools in the United States has resulted in the restructuring, reduction, and in some cases, elimination of arts in the curriculum to the detriment of students' creative thinking process. The purpose of this study was to discover whether creative thinking and collaborative skills were positive unintended consequences of a curriculum that includes the design of wearable technologies. Jonassen's modeling using Mindtools for conceptual change and Rosen's culture of collaboration provided the conceptual framework. …

Creative Multi-Disciplinary Learning Incorporating Da Vinci-Style Thinking For Gifted Students, Amelia Melissa Ferrell

All Graduate Projects

This project reviews the merits of interdisciplinary study with a focus on creative thinking, using the foundational knowledge of the life studies of Leonardo da Vinci to teach students concepts in math, science, art, and social studies. From these learnings, students will develop projects of interest that show their basic learning extended into creative student-developed projects.

A Life Well Crafted, Sarah Renee Clay

Graduate Student Independent Studies

This paper will attempt to define the relationship between creative thinking required for a craft and aspects of adult development, such as goal setting and achieving. Included in the study is a curriculum designed to teach sewing to beginning students, an introduction to creative thinking, and four case studies.

Creativity As A 21st Century Skill: Training Teachers To Take It Beyond The Arts, Linda Salna

Creativity and Change Leadership Graduate Student Master's Projects

Creative Thinking is a critical life skill needed for success in the 21^st Century. The next generation will be working in jobs that may not even exist today. It is education’s responsibility to prepare students by teaching them how to think not what to think.

Given my commitment to bringing creativity to education, this project focused on working with a small group of public school teachers to find effective methods and materials to assist teachers in using creativity tools. Given that teachers are busy people who work within time constraints and the demands of a large set of curriculum …

Text And Texture: An Arts-Based Exploration Of Transformation In Adult Learning: A Dissertation, Enid E. Larsen

Educational Studies Dissertations

This research explored the transformational and co-transformational potential of collage, assemblage and mixed media in an accelerated undergraduate adult course on imagination and creativity. The methods were qualitative and arts-based artist-teacher inquiry within a constructivist art class for ten, female adult learners. Informed by the researcher's living inquiry through visual auto-ethnography, a collagist methodology shaped the research, including syllabus construction, course delivery and data gathering. Process was an emergent and interpretative analytic tool, drawn from multiple perspectives of artwork and reflections by the students, and the multiple identities inherent to the artist-teacher researcher.

Digital Collage-Access To Inspiration: The Use Of Multimedia As A Catalyst For Creative Thought, Frederick George Still

Theses Digitization Project

This paper takes the position that creativity can be enhanced by multimedia. Computer software was designed and a study was conducted to measure that proposition. The author used participant self-analysis as a means to gather data on creativity enhancement holding to the presupposition that people can tell when they are creative and when their creativity is inhibited. The results of the study supported the belief that multimedia and the software designed for that purpose was able to enhance creativity.

The Intelligences Of Creative English-As-A-Foreign-Language Learning, Alvin Charles Yen

Theses Digitization Project

This project provides a model for incorporating creativity in teaching English as a foreign language (EFL). It includes an instructional unit comprised of six lessons followed by accompanying assessments. Culture and language cannot be separated as students learn a foreign language.

Implementing The Teaching Strategy: "Identifying Similarities And Differences", Karilyn Dangleis

Theses Digitization Project

In order to enhance academic achievement it is necessary to implement a teaching strategy which provides students with tools needed to improve classroom performance. This study will produce data showing whether the implementation of "Indentifying Similarities and Differences" is an effective teaching strategy.

Using Technologies Of The Self To Stimulate Students' Intelligences In English As A Foreign Language Learning, Shao-Hung Chen

Theses Digitization Project

The purpose of this curriculum project is to provide an approach to enrich the process of teaching and learning. This project uses psychological tools to stimulate students' multiple intelligences and to encourage students to know how to manage their learning, so that learning English will no longer be boring; instead it will be creative and practical.

Project-Based Learning For Independent Study Students With Technology Integration, Laura Sturman

Theses Digitization Project

This project developed criteria for evaluating projects for independent study students through a review of the literature and a survey of teachers. The criteria are largely student directed and multi-disciplinary, they engage higher level thinking skills and incorporates a variety of resources including technology.

The Artist Scholars: E Pluribus Unum: An Integration Of The Arts Into Middle School Curricula, Shawn Kevin Smith

Theses Digitization Project

The artist scholars: E pluribus unum is an exploratory curriculum designed to be implemented into middle schools. Adolescents experience a period of chaotic and emotional changes that can be both confusing and challanging. This cummiculum seeks to give adolescents a means of expressing themselves. By introducing students to performing arts, the literary arts, and the visual arts, adolescents will begin to answer the basic questions of being human: who are we? Where do we come from? How is knowledge constructed, used, and valued? Each unit consists of lesson plans intended to introduce students to the basic elements of the arts.

Developing An Art Curriculum For Elementary Education, Jo-Ann Brow

Theses Digitization Project

No abstract provided.

An Historical Overview Of Creativity With Implications For Education, Antoinette S. Ellis

Dissertations and Theses

This thesis traced the development of the concept of creativity from the earliest works in the intellectual history of Western civilization to the late twentieth century. This historical perspective on the concept of creativity served as a backdrop to current views of the concept and as a reference source for recurrent views of the concept and as a reference source for recurrent and essential themes in the progressing debates concerning this issue.

The Relationship Of The Creativity Of Teachers And Their Students, Norman Frederick Erken

All Master's Theses

It is the purpose of this study to determine whether or not there is a relationship between the creativity of a teacher, as measured by the Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking Verbal, Form A, and the creativity of the students with whom she works, as measured by the same instrument.

Confirmation Of Creativity, Dorothy N. Phillips

All Master's Theses

Investigated was the accumulated knowledge of what is known or surmised about creativity; practiced was the skill of becoming the kind of person who, while working with children, can establish an atmosphere where creativity is likely to flourish.

A Study Of The Creative Thinking Abilities Of Teachers And The Tested Creativity Of Their Pupils, Florine Creekmore

All Master's Theses

The purpose of this study was to investigate the creative thinking abilities of teachers and the tested creativity of their pupils.