Education Commons^™

Strategies And Techniques To Impact Teachers’ Ability To Improve Students’ Reading Skills, Helen E. Martinez

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This study examines strategies and techniques intended to update 5th-grade target students’ reading skills at Our Lady of Victory (OLV) Catholic School. A comparative analysis of the reading comprehension subtest results from the Stanford Achievement Test of successive cohorts of OLV 4th-grade students showed a decline during the students’ 4th-grade year. An effort to identity this decline in performance led the researcher to possible factors: teacher quality and degree of parental involvement. To address this problem, Brandt, Farmer, and Buckmaster’s (1993) cognitive Apprenticeship Model program, in which instruction is modeled and adult learners gradually take responsibility for instructing young learners, …

Teacher Personal Characteristics And School Organizational/Contextual Factors That Contribute To Retention In The Teaching Profession, Nelson E. Diaz

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

Miami-Dade County Public Schools (M-DCPS) is the area’s largest employer with 21,399 instructional professionals. During the 2000-2001 school year, 3,100 new teachers were hired in the district due mainly to growth in the student population and attrition of personnel.

The purpose of this practicum was to identify the personal and organizational factors that have contributed to teachers’ decisions to remain employed in M-DCPS during the first five years of employment. The initial cohort of teachers selected for this study was 1,015 newly hired teachers during the 1996-97 school year. The sample population selected for this study was 749 teachers from …

Aligning Special Education Individualized Education Plans With District Curriculum And Learning Results, Martha G. Corkery

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

Instructional practice at Bonny Eagle Middle School in Buxton, Maine, did not fully integrate IEP goals with curriculum and Maine Learning Results developed by the Maine Department of Education in 1997. Students with disabilities were prohibited from optimal learning experiences. In this study, the relationship between a sample group of students, language arts individual education plan goals, and curricular standards were attempted to be strengthened through enhanced instructional methodologies and assessments. The intended results of this study were to impact these students' levels of classroom involvement in addition to building collaboration among special and regular education teachers. Teachers' philosophies about …

A Strategy For Linking Service Learning And Character Education For Gifted Students, Martha Gillham-Smith

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This practicum, implemented from January-December 2001, was designed as a strategy to determine the direction of service-learning projects for gifted students. In addition, the service-learning projects linked two principles of the state-mandated character education program developed by the Georgia General Assembly. The two principles of the character education program state that students should have repeated and varied opportunities for moral action within the school, and students should be positively affected by them. Additionally, students should be involved in leadership roles in ways that help them contribute to good character. A review of the literature indicated that gifted programs should allow …

Fostering Deep Connection: Emotional Learning, Spiritual Education, And Peer Mentoring For Adolescents, Johh A. Venturella

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This report describes an intervention in a Catholic, college preparatory junior-senior high school of 700 students designed to help students connect with other members of the school community and with God.

A survey of the 553 students in Grades 7 through 11 was administered in May 2000 to determine whether students were experiencing a lack of connection to the school community and to God that would warrant intervention. Participating in the student survey were the following groups: (a) 110 Grade 7 students, (b) 121 Grade 8 students, (c) 119 Grade 9 students, (d) 126 Grade 10 students, and (e) 77 …

Establishing An Environment Of Safeness At Deborah Cannon Wolfe Elementary School, Dorothy E. Khonyongwa

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This report describes a program that was implemented to ensure an orderly and safe learning environment at a rural elementary school with a student population of approximately 285. An informal assessment of the school building and grounds revealed that the students were exposed to an unsafe and insecure school environment.

Planned solution strategies included (a) a school safety assessment, (b) an updated school safety plan, (c) a safety initiative team, (d) student and teacher safety training, and (e) the purchase of basic school safety equipment. These intervention strategies involved parents, students, teachers, administrators, and other community stakeholders. The process began …

A Design For The Infusion Of State Mandated Technology Standards Into A Teacher Education Credentialing Program, Paul F. Massmann

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This applied dissertation was designed to infuse state mandated technology standards into the curriculum of a small university accredited to grant teaching certification. The state recently revised its requirements for the entire credential process. In doing so, they developed a much more demanding set of technology standards than those currently in place in the program. This new set of requirements included not only specific standards to be met by the credential candidate, but required the faculty to model these standards in their traditional face-to-face classes. The goal was to effectively implement these new standards.

The solution had two distinct tracks. …

Increasing The Use Of Video Teleconferencing To Conduct Business Meetings Through Changing Perceptions, Attitudes, And Behaviors, Melvin B. Baker

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This applied dissertation was developed to meet the use objective of a video teleconferencing room. The dissertation searched for an understanding into the perceptions, attitudes, and behaviors of corporate personnel toward using video teleconferencing to conduct business meetings. The applied dissertation was designed to report on a solution strategy for changing the perceptions, attitudes, and behaviors of corporate personnel to conduct efficient and effective business meetings using video teleconferencing as the delivery medium.

The writer developed a training strategy that focused on the possible causes gleaned from a literature review and past experiences. The training strategy contained video teleconferencing demonstrations …

Increasing The Reading Levels Of Students To Prevent The Risk Of Retention, Diane O'Mara

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This applied dissertation was designed to provide. an overview of a reading intervention program for at-risk 2nd grade students at a public elementary school. The school system lacked intervention programs to assist at-risk readers. Therefore, students were either retained or promoted without intervention programs.

The researcher developed a reading intervention program for 10 at-risk second grade students. The goal of the program was to increase reading levels so that the students could be promoted to Grade 3. Local college students tutored the students 3 times per week for 30 minutes each session. Each child was provided with an individualized reading …

Integrating Concept Mapping Across The Accounting Curriculum -A Technology Solution, Jayne D. Maas

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

The purpose of this applied dissertation proposal was to integrate concept mapping into the accounting curriculum at Towson University. The problem was the need for innovative teaching pedagogies and learning tools that explicitly support the development of accounting students' complex thinking skills. These issues were perceived as essential elements for future accounting education and critical needs for future accounting professionals.

A technology solution was proposed, using the visual learning tool Inspiration 6.0®. A qualitative evaluation methodology was be used to collect and analyze data on the course content and topics essential to develop accounting students' complex thinking skills. The results …

Design And Implementation Of A Foreign Language In The Elementary Schools Program, Stephanie M. Pappagianopoulos

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This report describes a program that was initiated to promote the sequential study of foreign language beginning in the elementary schools. The program involved 78 third grade students from an urban elementary school. Approximately 10% of the students had some knowledge of the language before the program. The planned strategies included (a) distribution of a survey to parents and teachers within the pilot school; (b) tallying the responses; (c) adopting Spanish as the second language based on parent and teacher responses; (d) hiring an elementary school teacher with Spanish certification; (e) obtaining grant money for professional development . of the …

The Developnient Of A Religious Education Parish Training Manual For Novice Clergy In The Greek Orthodox Archdiocese Of America, Frank Marangos

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

The Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America (GOA) is responsible for preparing clergy for Orthodox parishes through America. An important responsibility of Orthodox clergy is the training a:nd development of parish religious educators. Greek Orthodox clergy, however, are rarely graduates of academic programs specifically designed with an emphasis on teacher preparation. Consequently, newly ordained clergy have difficulty developing their respective parish teachers. The problem is that novice clergy are not provided support resources for effectively teaching parish religious educators how to teach.

The seven research questions answered in this applied dissertation were as follows: What are the most recurring problems experienced …

Using Metacognitive Instructional Strategies To Improve Fourth Graders’ Writing Performance, Gary F. Mazzola

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

The intent of this applied dissertation was to improve the writing skills of fourth graders in a suburban school district. The composition scores from the last three administrations of a state assessment have been the lowest scores, with little or no increase in performance. A possible cause was inconsistent instructional practice resulting . in the need for teachers to focus on and provide a system of consistent metacognitive strategies, as a possible remedy.

Teachers received four sessions of LINKS,. training. LINKS,,. is a system of metacognitive instructional strategies designed for teaching writing and thinking skills. The ·focus of this training …

An Historical Study Of The Governance Of Vermont’S 16 Regional Technical Centers, Mary Beth Moore

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

This dissertation is written as a historical study to examine the effects of equalized funding of education in Vermont and a governance proposal for legislative revisions for Vermont's 16 regional technical centers. Governance became a controversial topic in the Vermont General Assembly in August 1996 after the reconstruction of the Career Development Center in Bennington, Vermont.

An outcome of the Construction Act was the moratorium placed on all construction projects in May 1996. Requested by Senator Illuzzi of Newport, Vermont, a study was conducted to decide the impact of the recent legislation and reconstruction of Vermont's technical centers. A series …

Peer Mediation: A Means To Success In Managing Student Behavior At Bradshaw High School, Randy J. Pettus

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

The applied dissertation process included the study of whether peer mediation is effective in reducing student suspensions. It also included a search for means to increase positive behaviors and to reduce violent behaviors and negative attitudes of students. It sought to increase students’ communication skills, helping them to respond to others in a more positive manner. The outcome of this applied dissertation appeared to result in increased positive social skills among students.

This applied dissertation study focused on behaviors of students at Bradshaw High School in Florence, Alabama, a 750-student school serving Grades 9-12 at the time of the research. …

Positive Attitudes Lead To Success: An Intervention Program For Elementary Discipline-Challenged Male Students, Phyllis Clark-Freeman

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

Positive Attitudes Lead to Success: An Intervention Program for Elementary Discipline-Challenged Male Students

This dissertation describes the Positive Attitudes Lead to Success Club (PALS), a program designed to help 20 5th-grade male students in an elementary school of 760 students improve their behavior and achieve academic success. An analysis of the Discipline Report data for the last 3 years reveals that Campostella Elementary (CES) has had an unacceptable amount of referrals by the standards set forth by Norfolk Public Schools (NPS) for unacceptable behavior. These 20 students have received 80% of all referrals for the past school year. Such information …

The Effects Of Phonological Awareness On Kindergarten Reading Achievement, Barbara A. Grazel

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

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Bringing Online Learning To Campus: The Hybridization Of Teaching And Learning At Brigham Young University, Gregory L. Waddoups, Scott L. Howell

Faculty Publications

The primary purpose of Brigham Young University (BYU) is to provide students with a combination of sacred and secular education often described as the BYU experience. Achieving this purpose is challenged by the rapid growth in Church membership and an enrollment cap of 30,000 students. To address these challenges, BYU sponsors the use of technology to bridge the gap between the increased Church membership and the number of students allowed under the enrollment caps. This institutional case study shows how these challenges have influenced the hybridization of teaching and learning for on campus (resident) and off campus (distance) students. It …

Factors For Effective Learning Groups In Face-To-Face And Virtual Environments, Charles R. Graham

Faculty Publications

Group work has been a powerful instructional method used in face-to-face learning environments. To date, group work has not reached the same prominence in distance learning environments where there is a strong emphasis on independent or individualistic learning. This may be due in part to the perceived difficulty of engaging students in working together at a distance, as well as a general lack of knowledge about the factors that contribute to effective virtual group work. This paper reviews the literature related to creating effective learning groups in face-to-face and virtual environments. Research from the following four areas was used: cooperative …

Secondary Student Perceptions Of Vocational Education, Randall Mcgarey Haney

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The central focus of the present study was to examine the relationship between student personal factors (i.e., gender, race, academic performance, career awareness, and socio-economic factors) and the perceptions of secondary school students regarding vocational education. In recent years, traditional vocational programs have not done well throughout the nation. Enrollment within vocational education has dropped to approximately 10%, while enrollment in college preparation courses has increased to over 50%.

The subjects of this study were secondary school students enrolled in the Duval County Public School system. The research was conducted using a two-part survey instrument containing 24 demographic questions and …