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Full-Text Articles in Education
Role Playing Gamification In The Science Classroom, Timothy Normandt
Role Playing Gamification In The Science Classroom, Timothy Normandt
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Invented in 1972, Dungeons & Dragons was a brand new way to play games—utilizing the strongest computer humans have ever conceived: the human brain. This project strives to categorize some of the techniques used in the classroom as role playing in their own right. The purpose of all gamification, role playing and SEL, and the satanic panic that came out against Dungeons & Dragons are looked at. This paper additionally looks at some examples of role playing in the classroom that have succeeded at a small charter school in Minneapolis. These findings underscore the equity achieved by allowing for student …
Supporting Multicultural Mental Health With Culturally And Linguistically Relevant Practices, Codi Shogren
Supporting Multicultural Mental Health With Culturally And Linguistically Relevant Practices, Codi Shogren
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Teaching through the COVID-19 pandemic as an English teacher to elementary school learners highlighted many mental health needs for learners that were amplified even more once everyone was back in school full time. My fellow educators and I have been surviving and reacting to mental health needs and behaviors as they pop up during the school year but that is neither a long term solution nor does it provide the needed support to learners. These experiences in the classroom led to the question: How can elementary educators support multicultural learners with their mental health? After researching culturally and linguistically responsive …
Animal Assisted Environmental Education Program Design: The Environmental Learning Farm, Kellie Soronen
Animal Assisted Environmental Education Program Design: The Environmental Learning Farm, Kellie Soronen
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Research has shown that by including animals in therapeutic and educational experiences progress can be made in improving the quality of our education and the quality of our lives. This project focused on filling a gap seen in Minnesota’s environmental education programs. There are many environmental learning centers in Minnesota and many different animal assisted therapy programs focusing on physical, mental and emotional health, but there is not a program that is dedicated to bringing our domesticated animals into the curriculum in environmental education. The Environmental Learning Farm is an theoretical and experimental project that could bridge the gap that …
Observing The Impact Of Environmental Science Exploration And Discovery On The Social-Emotional Learning Of 2nd Grade Students, Laura Sammis
Observing The Impact Of Environmental Science Exploration And Discovery On The Social-Emotional Learning Of 2nd Grade Students, Laura Sammis
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations
The guiding question in this study was, how do outdoor science exploration and discovery impact the social-emotional learning of 2nd grade students. This study documents the author’s development, facilitation and analysis of a 3-week science unit that included an increase of time spent outdoors. This study was conducted in an observational and descriptive qualitative manner that used the researcher’s real-time observations, reflections and student surveys. The author utilized research literature to develop meaning and understanding of the concepts to support the importance of the study. The author describes the study in terms of successes and limitations. The study concludes that …
Social-Emotional Learning Integration Into Language Arts Classrooms, Claire Johnas
Social-Emotional Learning Integration Into Language Arts Classrooms, Claire Johnas
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Growing up is hard. Not many people are interested in reliving their adolescent years. One way that school professionals can support students during adolescence is through meeting their social and emotional needs so that they may be successful academically. This led to the question, How can social-emotional learning be authentically integrated into the middle school language arts classroom? To assist in answering this question, expert research was explored and examined around six topics— teacher preparation and professional development, use of social-emotional learning in middle schools and in English- language arts classrooms, other various social-emotional activities, assessments, and parent involvement and …
Effective And Engaging Ways Of Teaching The Civil Rights Movement To K-2 Students By Sarah Westad, Sarah Westad
Effective And Engaging Ways Of Teaching The Civil Rights Movement To K-2 Students By Sarah Westad, Sarah Westad
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
The research question addressed in this project is, what are the most effective and engaging ways to teach K-2 students about the Civil Rights Movement while fostering meaningful connections to history? It documents the research and creation of a curriculum unit discussing the Civil Rights Movement as it existed in the past as well as in the 21st century. The curriculum unit developed in this capstone covers eleven instructional days beginning with slavery and ending with current events discussions. The capstone chapters address issues like master narrative myths, incorporating student experiences and interest, and research based practices. It looks at …
Social-Emotional Learning For The Alternative High School, Lindsay A. Bednar
Social-Emotional Learning For The Alternative High School, Lindsay A. Bednar
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
The purpose of this capstone is to provide social-emotional learning (SEL) strategies for educational professionals to use with high-school students in the alternative high school. Included in this capstone is a detailed description of SEL as well as an analysis of the need for SEL offering in alternative high schools. The project provides three succinct strategies that educators and professionals can implement within an alternative education setting to best support the high needs of their students. Adapted from Nancy Hellander Pung’s UpCoaching framework, the three strategies focus on deepening questions that allow students to realize their values, their intentions, and …
How To Build A Classroom Community Of Caring, Self-Directed Learners Through The Use Of Morning Meeting In The First Ten Days Of School And Beyond, Andi Jo Zimmerman
How To Build A Classroom Community Of Caring, Self-Directed Learners Through The Use Of Morning Meeting In The First Ten Days Of School And Beyond, Andi Jo Zimmerman
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Research has demonstrated that creating a child-centered classroom and implementing the Responsive Classroom Morning Meeting is integral to creating a classroom community. The curriculum designed for this project focuses on using Roxanne Kriete’s “The Morning Meeting Book” and other theories of co-operative learning to create a framework of a Morning Meeting to create a classroom community of self-directed learners. The project involved creating a diverse curriculum that engages students with classmates and their own learning through activities that expose them to both social and emotional skills and strategies but also academic skills, in an atmosphere that is non-threatening. The curriculum …
Improving Attention And Emotional Regulation For Middle School Students Through The Use Of Mindfulness Practices, Sean Mattner
Improving Attention And Emotional Regulation For Middle School Students Through The Use Of Mindfulness Practices, Sean Mattner
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Mattner, S. Improving Attention and Emotional Regulation for Middle School Students Through the Use of Mindfulness Practices. (2019) Research has demonstrated that establishing a mindfulness practice has a range of mental, emotional, social, and educational benefits. The curriculum designed for this project focuses on using mindfulness techniques for 6th-8th grade students to improve attention, concentration, and emotional regulation. Mindfulness practices have been implemented in a number of settings, from hospitals to work environments for decades, but implementing it within the classroom, especially for children, is limited. The project involved creating a diverse curriculum that engages students with mindfulness through activities …
A Necessity For Social And Emotional Learning In Kindergarten The Teaching Of Self-Regulation Through Literacy, Kirsten M. Pinkerton
A Necessity For Social And Emotional Learning In Kindergarten The Teaching Of Self-Regulation Through Literacy, Kirsten M. Pinkerton
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
The research question addressed in this capstone project was: How can kindergarten teachers begin the year using a text set to teach the social and emotional learning skill of self-regulation? This capstone project was identified through the author’s experience observing many kindergarten students struggling to positively interact with their peers due to ill-developed social and emotional skills. The Self-regulation Text Set Unit lesson plans designed for this capstone project incorporate the teaching of social and emotional learning skills through literacy instruction. This project developed a text set unit with 13 lesson plans and accompanying texts to be used by kindergarten …
Secondary Teachers Should Expose Rural Readers To Books That Are Culturally Different Than The Student's Personal Choice, Sarah Roiger
Secondary Teachers Should Expose Rural Readers To Books That Are Culturally Different Than The Student's Personal Choice, Sarah Roiger
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
This capstone addresses the research question, “How can secondary teachers expose rural readers to books that are culturally different than the student’s personal choice?” It documents one teacher’s creation of a book club that allows students a chance to read various novels that portray cultures that differ from the rural culture. It integrates differentiation of choice novels, reflections, and character comparisons. The author documents research from the literature review based on rural influence and motivation, classroom culture, and censorship by schools, parents, and librarians. This project includes the lists of books to use, the step-by-step layout, and the character comparison …
Movement And Mindfulness In The Kindergarten Classroom, Kylie Rosenthal
Movement And Mindfulness In The Kindergarten Classroom, Kylie Rosenthal
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
The research question addressed in this project was: How will intentional movement and mindfulness opportunities in a kindergarten classroom impact the classroom environment, student behavior, and student achievement? The stress, emotional and behavioral management, self-regulation skills, and mental health of the students in her classroom led the author to research topics of the brain and movement, classroom environment and student wellbeing, the effects movement has on student achievement, examples of schools implementing movement and mindfulness, and yoga and mindfulness programs and curriculums. The research showed that movement and mindfulness provide many benefits to students’ emotional wellbeing, behavior, regulation, and academic …
Using Multicultural Literature To Teach Grammar To English Learners, Laura Anderson
Using Multicultural Literature To Teach Grammar To English Learners, Laura Anderson
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
The research question addressed in this project was, What are the implications for using multicultural literature as mentor texts to teach academic English language grammar structures in an elementary setting? The author describes her past personal and professional experiences as a student and teacher that led her to developing this research question. Then, the author reviews professional literature on the topics of multicultural literature, best practices in teaching ESL, and culturally responsive teaching to connect each topic to the research focus. Next, the author describes the project, which is a curricular unit of ten lessons teaching prepositions to second grade …
Using Classcraft As A Positive Behavioral Intervention Strategy In The Classroom, Renae Otto
Using Classcraft As A Positive Behavioral Intervention Strategy In The Classroom, Renae Otto
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
The research question addressed in this project was, how does Classcraft, a positive behavioral intervention strategy, increase student motivation in the classroom? It chronicles a teacher’s creation of a professional development plan and professional development presentation to integrate Classcraft into a positive behavioral intervention system (PBIS) classroom. The author uses related research literature in the areas of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, social and emotional learning, generation z students, and gamification in the classroom. In this study it is found that combining PBIS and Classcraft will allow teachers to foster the development of positive behaviors in the classroom. Classcraft can be …
How To Use An Advisory Period To Cultivate High School Students’ Social And Emotional Growth, Elizabeth Lundquist
How To Use An Advisory Period To Cultivate High School Students’ Social And Emotional Growth, Elizabeth Lundquist
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
This capstone paper and project addressed the research question: How can high school teachers cultivate students’ social and emotional growth during an advisory period in order to promote positive behavior and increase overall student achievement? Social and emotional learning is established as a critical component of overall positive youth development. The author’s literature review examined the impact strong social and emotional skills can have on individual behavior, classroom community, school climate, and academic achievement. Her research also focused on the unique opportunity an advisory period provides as a time and place through which every student may receive instruction and additional …
Involvement In Extracurricular Activities And Overall High School Experience: Academics, School Belonging, And Career/College Readiness, Michael Richards
Involvement In Extracurricular Activities And Overall High School Experience: Academics, School Belonging, And Career/College Readiness, Michael Richards
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
The research question addressed in this project was to find out if there is a connection between extra-curricular (EC) activities and high school belonging, academics, and college/career readiness that makes school a more positive experience overall. The primary focus of this project was on finding if there is a positive impact on involvement in EC activities with regard to school belonging and college/career readiness along with higher achieving academics. An online survey was administered to the student body and there were individual interviews conducted. Along with analyzing literature, the researcher looks into his background of EC activities and how it …
Involvement In Extracurricular Activities And Overall High School Experience: Academics, School Belonging, And Career/College Readiness, Mike Richards
Involvement In Extracurricular Activities And Overall High School Experience: Academics, School Belonging, And Career/College Readiness, Mike Richards
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations
The research question addressed in this project was to find out if there is a connection between extra-curricular (EC) activities and high school belonging, academics, and college/career readiness that makes school a more positive experience overall. The primary focus of this project was on finding if there is a positive impact on involvement in EC activities with regard to school belonging and college/career readiness along with higher achieving academics. An online survey was administered to the student body and there were individual interviews conducted. Along with analyzing literature, the researcher looks into his background of EC activities and how it …
Improving The Social And Emotional Education Curriculum In A Middle School, School Within A School Gifted And Talented Program, Natalie Polaschek
Improving The Social And Emotional Education Curriculum In A Middle School, School Within A School Gifted And Talented Program, Natalie Polaschek
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
The research question addressed in this capstone project was, how can staff address the social and emotional needs of gifted and talented students in a middle school, school within a school gifted and talented program? It documents a gifted and talented middle school teacher’s development of a social and emotional curriculum for 6th-8th grade students in a homogeneous gifted and talented program. The program includes lessons on social-emotional learning that is beneficial to all middle school students, as well as topics that are directed towards the specific needs of gifted learners. The author shares her research and the successes and …
The Use Of A Culturally Responsive Text Set For Reinforcing Self-Regulation In Primary, Trauma-Affected Somali Students, Melinda Lomen
The Use Of A Culturally Responsive Text Set For Reinforcing Self-Regulation In Primary, Trauma-Affected Somali Students, Melinda Lomen
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
The research question in this project was, How can the use of a culturally responsive and trauma-sensitive text set reinforce self-regulation in primary Somali students? It documents one teacher’s creation of a culturally responsive and trauma sensitive text set to accompany the selfregulation curriculum of The Zones of Regulation (Kuypers, 2011). The text set follows the Quad Text Set framework based on Lupo et al.’s (2018) research. The author documents the alignment of the resources in the text set to the nine major topics in the Zones of Regulation (Kuypers, 2011) curriculum. The author also explores how the project follows …
Discovering The Learner Profile: An Interactive Read-Aloud Curriculum For K-2 Students In The International Baccalaureate Primary Years Programme, Dannika Wright
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Interaction with quality picture books is a powerful way for young students in the International Baccalaureate Primary Years Program (IB PYP) to develop understanding of the Learner Profile. The Learner Profile is a set of ten attributes that define the “internationally minded learner” and is an integral part of the PYP curriculum framework. The author of this capstone examines existing literature on the history and structure of the IB and PYP, character education, and interactive read-alouds to create a curriculum that focus on attributes of the Learner Profile. Using the PYP curriculum framework and elements of the Fountas and Pinnell …
Embedding Social Emotional Learning Goals Into A Reading Curriculum For Third Grade, Molly Tiedeman Brown
Embedding Social Emotional Learning Goals Into A Reading Curriculum For Third Grade, Molly Tiedeman Brown
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
The inquiry into the best way to embed Social Emotional Learning in a literacy curriculum for 3rd grade, led the author to read literature explaining the components of social emotional learning, focusing on one competency: selfawareness. Effective curriculum elements, third grade standards and specific strategies were also reviewed. The author concluded that the best way to do this was through the reader’s workshop framework, specifically the mini-lesson. The author created a four-week curriculum, each week focusing on one children’s literature text that teaches both literacy standards and social emotional learning. Extension activities and strategies to implement throughout the school day …
Social Emotional Learning Skill Development And Application, Sarah Eide
Social Emotional Learning Skill Development And Application, Sarah Eide
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
This capstone explores the development and application of social emotional learning skills in elementary age students. The research question addressed was “what social emotional learning skills are most important in a social emotional learning curriculum for elementary age students? Research surrounding the early development of these skills and the impact that social emotional learning has on overall academic success in the classroom is discussed. Based on findings in the research, a K-2 social emotional learning curriculum was created. The curriculum focuses on three themes- respect, social awareness and self-awareness. This curriculum aims to provide the most comprehensive and developmentally appropriate …
Are Primary Schools Incorporating Enough Movement Into The Day To Maintain Positive Mental Health In Children?, Jennifer Schmidt
Are Primary Schools Incorporating Enough Movement Into The Day To Maintain Positive Mental Health In Children?, Jennifer Schmidt
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
Schools have endured a shift in regards to academic rigor and the amount of time spent in physical activity. In order to be a top academically performing nation, America has made academic rigor a priority. In order to accommodate the amount of content and rigor, cuts have typically been made to the amount of time spent in recess, physical education and health education classes. Another trend in America is the prevalence of mental health issues in children. When considering the cuts being made in education it is critical to acknowledge the repercussions they may have on mental health. This capstone …
Teaching Animal Ethics In Culturally Diverse Settings, Julie Knopp
Teaching Animal Ethics In Culturally Diverse Settings, Julie Knopp
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects
This project explores the research question “How can we teach compassion for animals in a culturally responsive manner?” The premise stems from the contrast of the narrow range of values taught in public schools and the growing cultural diversity of our students. Literature in moral development theory, culturally responsive pedagogy, and humane education suggested that the most effective values education invites students to think critically. By providing information, modeling, and supports for ethical decision-making, students develop a greater sense of moral integrity, while simultaneously developing essential academic skills. The result of this project is a unit promoting critical thinking about …
Perceptions From School Principals About The Role Of Schools In Developing Student Leadership, Pangjua Vang Xiong
Perceptions From School Principals About The Role Of Schools In Developing Student Leadership, Pangjua Vang Xiong
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations
Student leadership within the elementary school is a newer concept and has not been researched or implemented widely. However, there are some elementary schools that have been developing student leadership. This research focused on gathering the perceptions of elementary school principals toward the role of the school in developing student leadership. This qualitative research followed a grounded theory process. Data collection methods involved gathering data from an online survey, elite interviews, and field observations, which allowed a triangulation of data and findings. Participants from a midwestern metro area were selected for this research based on an online search for schools …
How Can Text-Based Debates Increase Empathy In Upper Elementary Students, Melissa M. Ogden
How Can Text-Based Debates Increase Empathy In Upper Elementary Students, Melissa M. Ogden
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations
The research question addressed in this project was, how can textbased debates increase empathy in upper elementary students? It explores research around critical literacy, socialemotional learning, and debates with a specific focus on alternative perspectives and empathy development. The researcher combines research around different forms of debate, argumentation and collaborative reasoning, to create a textbased debate protocol. The action research studies the impact on students’ empathy development for characters found in read aloud texts through participation in weekly textbased debates and written reflections. Students debated two opposing perspectives regarding a character’s personality and wrote reflections in which they explained both …
The Impact Of Critical Literacy On The Moral Reasoning Of Adolescents, Sierra Mae Gilbertson
The Impact Of Critical Literacy On The Moral Reasoning Of Adolescents, Sierra Mae Gilbertson
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations
The research question addressed in this study was, in what ways does the implementation of critical literacy impact the moral reasoning of adolescents? It documents one teacher’s use of action research to create a unit that integrated critical literacy methods based on the research of McLaughlin & DeVoogd with moral education methods based on research by Kohlberg. The author documents details of the unit and uses related research literature to construct meaning and validate the study. She describes the effectiveness of each critical literacy activity in terms of the impact it had on the moral reasoning of her students and …
Increasing Autonomous Academic Motivation In Intermediate Elementary Students By Reducing Fear Of Failure, Whitney Schill Ramirez
Increasing Autonomous Academic Motivation In Intermediate Elementary Students By Reducing Fear Of Failure, Whitney Schill Ramirez
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations
The research question addressed in this project was, how does a combined approach of attribution retraining and incremental theory of intelligence intervention affect levels of autonomous academic motivation in intermediate elementary students? It documents the effects on autonomous academic motivation of an adapted intervention that taught fifth graders in an inner city, dual immersion program about making controllable attributions and having an incremental theory of intelligence. The intervention was part of a preexperiment that was based on the attribution retraining work of Haynes, Ruthig, Perry, Stupnisky, and Hall (2006), as well as the incremental theory of intelligence work of Blackwell, …
The Integration Of Social And Emotional Learning And Literacy, Sarah Marie Kennon Hippert
The Integration Of Social And Emotional Learning And Literacy, Sarah Marie Kennon Hippert
School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations
A curriculum development project exploring the integration of Social and Emotional Learning skills into the mini-lesson portion of Reader’s Workshop. Included is a definition of Social and Emotional Learning, an exploration of existing Social and Emotional curricula and state standards, a discussion of the effects of Social and Emotional Learning on both students and teachers, and an examination of impacts of Social and Emotional Learning on future success of students. The curriculum developed herein relies on picture books as a framework for enhancing both existing literacy and Social and Emotional curricula. It is organized around the five Social and Emotional …