Curriculum and Instruction Commons^™

Encouraging Esl Teachers To Empower Their Students To Read, Rachael M. Van Liefde

Master's Projects and Capstones

In the US, thousands of international students are studying, or are preparing to study, at institutions of higher education. Unfortunately, the below satisfactory English skills of these students are a concern worldwide. One of the most critical factors affecting their academic progress is their reading skills.

It is widely accepted that a successful student in higher education must be able to read and comprehend assigned readings quickly. However, reading speed and comprehension pose a significant obstacle for ESL students who are pursuing these goals. How can ESL teachers assist their students at the high beginning, intermediate or advanced levels in …

Effective Techniques For Teaching Phrasal Verbs To Improve The Communicative Competence Of Chinese English Learners, Guohua Fu

Master's Projects and Capstones

This project provides a teaching guidebook for both English as a Second Language (ESL) students and teachers. Most learners do not know how to use phrasal verbs in their daily conversation even if they have already learned them. Moreover, it is hard for students to remember phrasal verbs they learned if they don’t practice them in meaningful contexts. This project will address the problem of the ineffective instruction of English in China and the exclusion of two-word verbs from the Chinese curriculum. Due to the differences in linguistic and education backgrounds, ESL teachers and students desire a guidebook that is …

Improving Motivation, Engagement And Differentiation In Lesson Development Using An Interactive White Board: 10-Hour Workshop Cycle Toward Professional Development Certificate, Leslie Lieman, Jenelle Fiori, Naliza Sadik

Publications and Research

The School of Education prepares aspiring teachers for teaching in 21st century classrooms by offering intensive interactive white board training cycles. In designing interactive lessons, the workshop cycle focuses on the pedagogical decision making that can improve classroom teaching and student engagement and understanding.

Queering Social Justice Curricula Within Higher Education, Kate P. Cabot

Master's Projects and Capstones

Within higher education, social justice education has gained significant ground. While issues of gender, race, and class are increasingly addressed and incorporated into classes there remains a lack in inclusive curricula and pedagogies within colleges and universities when it comes to issues of gender and sexual identity. The social construction of gender and sexualities remains overlooked on the majority of college and university campuses, as well as the discrimination faced by Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex, and Asexual (LGBTQIA) students unaddressed within curricula. The representation of the LGBTQIA community can be attended to within classrooms, campuses, and curriculums in …

Then And Now: An Analysis Of Broad-Based Merit Aid Initial Eligibility Policies After Twenty Years, William K. Ingle, Jason R. Ratliff

Kentucky Journal of Higher Education Policy and Practice

Using Hall’s framework of policy changes, we sought to document and classify changes in initial eligibility and award provisions of broad-based merit aid scholarship programs at inception and present day. Our analysis revealed five first-order changes, two second-order changes, and only one third order change. Although the policy settings, instruments, and goals remained static in five states, the scholarship dollars in four of them have not kept up with increases in overall cost of attendance.

Classrooms As Creative Learning Communities: A Lived Curricular Expression, Soon Ye Hwang

Department of Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education: Theses and Other Student Research

Creativity—the fundamental basis of human experience, expression, and learning in the communal world of the classroom—is the primary concern of this dissertation. While creativity is one of the buzzwords of 21^st century education the world over, its lived understanding as fundamental to being human is understudied. This gap calls attention to the significances for all involved of entering into meaning making as creators. To explore the significances, I draw upon and give expression to my experiences of building such creative learning communities (CLC) in my own Multicultural Education (ME) classrooms as a teacher educator and curriculum theorist. Ways to …

Honoring Diversity In An Online Classroom: Approaches Used By Instructors Engaging Through An Lms, Jacob Petersen

Department of Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education: Theses and Other Student Research

This is an inquiry into how online instructors embrace the diversity of their student body while facing the inherent differences between a traditional face-to-face class and one that is taught online. Current research suggests that diversity in a traditional classroom is an asset if the instructor is sensitive to students’ backgrounds. This paper examines if such philosophies in traditional classrooms translate well into a distance education environment, where the student body may be even more diverse than a face-to-face class, but possibly unrecognizable because of the lack of physical cues. Research on the topic of multiculturalism in an online classroom …

Effective Practices For Developing Academic Language And Writing Skills In English Language Learners In The Elementary School Setting, Jenna N. Emadzadeh

Dissertations, Masters Theses, Capstones, and Culminating Projects

With an increased population of English Language Learners (ELLs), educators are in need of programs and strategies that help their students learn academic content while learning to understand, speak, read, and write English (Duessen, Autio, Roccegrandi & Hanita, 2014). ELLs face several obstacles while learning in an elementary school classroom.

Studies have shown the positive effects of word analysis and vocabulary learning strategies on student achievement (Carlo, August, McLaughlin, Snow, Dressler, Lippman, Lively & White, 2004). Project GLAD is a model of professional development in the area of language acquisition and literacy that focuses on such instruction. According to Echevarria …

Helping English Language Learners Develop Writing Proficiency Using The Thesis Evidence Model In The High School Social Studies Classroom, Keith R. Fleming

Dissertations, Masters Theses, Capstones, and Culminating Projects

English Language Learners (ELL) are struggling to develop literacy skills in social studies classes at the high school level in conjunction with the transition to Common Core State Standards (CCSS) and assessment. The researcher conducted a qualitative teacher action research study. Participants included freshman high school students in mainstream, college preparatory, World Cultures classes in an affluent, suburban, public school district in California.

Through this teacher action research study, 34 high school grade students responded to a writing prompt used a pre-test evaluation. Students were then guided through a lesson sequence teaching writing strategies based in the Thesis-Evidence model. Upon …

Self-Talk+ And Strategic Teacher Moves Aimed At Cognitive Advancement In Linguistically Diverse Elementary Mathematics Classrooms, Bailey M. Muchin

Honors Scholar Theses

This study’s objective was to determine the purposes of self-talk and related forms of talk (self-talk+) in linguistically diverse elementary mathematics classrooms, teacher moves that are often associated with self-talk+, and the relationship between self-talk+ and strategic teacher moves. This study analyzed transcripts, audio recordings, and video recordings from several elementary mathematics classrooms in dual language programs in order to determine the relationship among self-talk+ and strategic teacher moves. This study specifically focused on the purposes of self-talk+ that contributed to, or had the potential to impact, student cognitive advancement. The results of data analysis were mapped in order …

High School Educators’ Perceptions Of Their Schools’ Conduciveness To English Language Learners’ Success, Jill Winiger

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate the perceptions of administrators, guidance counselors, and classroom teachers in the high schools of Northeast Tennessee regarding their schools’ academics, climate, culture, parent engagement, and their English Language Learners’ school experiences. The researcher sought to ascertain if significant differences exist between the perceptions of different groups of educational professionals in the school, with those groups to include school administrators, guidance counselors, and classroom teachers. Data were analyzed from 50 survey questions with 42 of those questions measured on a 5-point Likert scale, 5 questions as multiple choice, and 3 questions as open-ended. …

Is Service-Learning The Answer? Preparing Teacher Candidates To Work With Ells Through Service-Learning Experiences, Sandra Rodriguez-Arroyo

Scholarship of Metropolitan Mission

In an effort to address the gaps in preparing teacher candidates (TCs) to work with English Language Learners (ELLs), service-learning experiences (SLE) were integrated into two courses within a teacher education program. This exploratory case study sought to explore the outcomes of teacher candidates (TCs) engaged in SLE with diverse students and families, particularly ELLs. Content analysis of students’ reflections provided insights of the impact of the SLE. Findings indicate that participating in service-learning with ELLs provides opportunities for TCs to engage in positive interactions that help to address misconceptions about students, families, and communities. TCs also began to confront …

Critical Theory And Catholic Social Teaching: A Research Framework For Catholic Schools, Jill Bradley-Levine, Kari A. Carr

Journal of Catholic Education

In this article, the authors share findings from an ethnographic study drawn from an evaluation of an after-school program directed by a Catholic diocese to meet the educational needs of children attending urban Catholic schools. The authors used critical research methods within the context of Catholic social teaching (CST) as a theoretical framework for the data presented in this article. Two themes emerged during this data collection and analysis. The first theme, student interactions, describes the helpful ways that students engaged with each other during the after-school program, and also the manner in which students exhibited a need for greater …

The Global Health "Interactive Curricula Experience (Ice) Platform & App": Technology That Enables Inter-Professional Innovation, Martha Langley Ankeny M.Ed., Janice M. Bogen, James Plumb Md, Mph, Lucille B. Pilling Edd, Mph, Rn, Ellen J. Plumb Md, Louis N. Hunter Pt, Dpt, Nicholas Leon Pharmd, Amy Earle Bfa

Academic Commons and Scott Memorial Library Staff Papers and Presentations

Global Health Initiatives Committee (GHIC)

Serves the Jefferson community as the premier point of engagement for students & faculty interested in medical and public health issues that transcend national boundaries

Creates an institutional focus on preparing students for public service careers in population health and public policy at local, national, and global levels

To enable all TJU faculty to:

- Deliver global health education, in a friendly, interactive format - Does not require an expert to deliver - Can be used in very small or large pieces depending on your needs

Survival Analysis: Timelines To English Language Proficiency At The Secondary School Level, Elisha W. Beardsley

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Capstones

The ELL population in the United States continues to increase. Research suggests that the English language proficiency growth rates for numerous ELL students are strongly correlated with their English language proficiency levels (Cook & Zhao, 2011; Conger, 2008). The results of Conger’s 2008 study suggested that just over fifty percent of students gained English language proficiency after three years. According to the same study, the students that did not typically gain English language proficiency were students who entered public schools older and with a lower English language proficiency level. The current study examines the likelihood of high school ELLs in …

P18 Black Male Summit, Brandon Jackson

Black Male Summit

GRAB “A Hands-On Approach to Student Engagement and Academic Performance for African American Males”

Can a handful of words change the trajectory of a persons’ life? Can this acronym G.R.A.B. lead to enhanced college and career readiness in addition enhance their quality of life?

Building A Culture Of Hope For At-Risk Students, Emily Louise Gibson, Robert D. Barr

National Youth Advocacy & Resilience Conference

Presenters will share research on the school culture differences found between high-performing and low-performing high-poverty schools. Participants will learn about A Culture of Hope and the four Seeds of Hope. After learning explicit steps and strategies for collecting and using survey data, participants will practice using surveys to assess components of school culture, and develop additional survey questions relevant to individual circumstances.

Seven Steps To Engaging At-Risk Students With Text, Jelani Jabari Ph.D.

National Youth Advocacy & Resilience Conference

Diminishing student engagement with text remains a colossal challenge with children at-risk. In this highly interactive session, participants will explore a seven-step process for engaging students with text as well as techniques for presenting highly engaging literacy lessons. Attendees will walk away with names, reading level, descriptions (and actual samples) of several engaging texts.

Modifying Science Texts To Accommodate The Needs Of Struggling Readers And English Language Learners, Regina Suriel, Crystal Randolph

National Youth Advocacy & Resilience Conference

Students with learning differences, including English language learners, experience difficulties with reading classroom textbooks. This presentation, intended for educators and parents, will discuss and provide practice in the identification of readability levels of science texts discuss the importance of integration of visual stimuli in science texts, and explain culturally-relevant approaches to science curricula.

Bailamos Juntos: Salsa En Los E.E.U.U. Y El Mundo, Betty Tran

First-Gen Voices: Creative and Critical Narratives on the First-Generation College Experience

This composition traces the history of Cuban-American cultural identity formation through the lens of music and dance. As the author explains, Cuban immigrants cultivated a rich music and dance culture in New York City by creating a series of Latin and Afro-Cuban music genres and dances that brought diverse groups of people together. As a Vietnamese-American woman, Tran sees several connections between her family’s Vietnamese heritage and the cultural histories of Cubans who came to the United States as refugees seeking asylum from political oppression. As a first-generation college student, Tran believes it is important to share this composition as …

“Warming Up” In The Developmental Sequence? Upward Transfer Conditional On Dependency Status, Cody Davidson, Kristin B. Wilson

Kentucky Journal of Higher Education Policy and Practice

The purpose of this study was to determine predictor factors of upward transfer for Kentucky community college students enrolled in a developmental algebra course. For independent students, a mother with a college degree, a declared major, a federal work-study position, greater adjusted gross income, and a higher grade point average was positively correlated with upward transfer. For dependent students, a father with a college degree, a declared major, and a higher grade point average was positively correlated with upward transfer.

Towards An Assumption Responsive Information Literacy Curriculum: Lessons From Student Qualitative Data, Rob Morrison, Deana Greenfield

Faculty Publications

This chapter will describe how the collection of data on college student assumptions impacted the development and revision of credit courses in digital information literacy. Drawing on qualitative data from pretests, assignments, questionnaires, reflection journals, and student evaluations, the authors will detail their teaching experiences and the development of an assumption responsive curriculum which challenges students to draw connections between new material and prior questions, concerns, and beliefs. We will also discuss the impetus for the development of our pretest survey tool, thoughts on why student assumptions matter in the classroom, and provide excerpts from the qualitative student data that …

Immigrant Children In The Age Of Educational Reform, Audrey Figueroa Murphy

Curriculum & Instruction Faculty Publications

Immigrant children are the fastest growing subgroup among United States schoolchildren today. This paper explores how the new testing movement affects these students, many of which are English language learners.The passage of new federal laws mandating that all students be tested within one year of entrance into a U.S. school is refuted by long standing research. Studies have demonstrated that it takes five to seven years for students to attain the academic language necessary to achieve success in educational settings.This paper explores the instructional program options for immigrant students and advocates for changes in the current testing protocol for them.

Teachers’ Perceptions Of The Implementation Of The Literacy Common Core State Standards For English Language Learners And Students With Disabilities, Audrey Figueroa Murphy, Elizabeth Haller

Curriculum & Instruction Faculty Publications

This qualitative study explored the experiences of U.S. teachers of English language learners (ELLs) and students with disabilities (SWDs) as they sought to align the new Common Core State Standards (CCSS) with previously used standards and instructional approaches during the first year of CCSS implementation. Open-ended interviews were conducted with 20 ELL and SWD literacy teachers to investigate (1) the teachers’ experiences as they began the alignment of their curriculum and teaching methods with the CCSS, (2) the teachers’ perceptions of the support that they received and that they still require, and (3) the teachers’ perceptions of the challenges to …

Loudness In The Library: Empowering Students To Think Critically About Identity And Bias, Anshu Wahi, Allie Bruce, Jamie Steinfeld

Progressive Education in Context

Describes how an unplanned, informal discussion about how race and identity are depicted on book covers evolved into a year-long investigation with a class of 11 and 12-year-olds where the interests and comments of the students drove the curriculum.

Breathe To Understand, Maxine Swisa

MA TESOL Collection

BREATHE is an acronym for Breathe, Reflect, Empathize, Accept, Thank, Hearten, Engage. The addition of Understand allows for a holistic approach to living a healthy and balanced life both inside and outside the classroom. This paper took form as a result of my personal, spiritual journey, as well as my teaching practice. I noticed that the majority of my students enjoyed experiential activities that included time and space for self-reflection, relaxation and meditation. I began looking for books, seminars, and workshops that explored these areas. Deepak Chopra, Jonathan Kabat-Zinn, Dan Siegel, Eckhart Tolle, et al. offer insights into the benefits …

Implementing An Extensive Reading Program In An Intensive University Eap Curriculum, Matthew Peel

MA TESOL Collection

The goal of this project was to integrate an extensive reading (ER) program within an existing 8-week intensive reading curriculum in a university English for academic purposes (EAP) program. The merits of both intensive and extensive reading approaches were examined and used to develop the methodology for the ER program. Additionally, implementation parameters, as agreed upon by the EAP program director and academic coordinator, were used to determine the design and implementation of the ER program that was piloted on a low-intermediate level reading class. A method of anonymous student feedback, via questionnaires and reading logs, were developed and applied …

American History Content-Based Instruction In China, Matthew K. Ingalls

MA TESOL Collection

This project demonstrates materials developed over a three-year period in Chinese international schools for the teaching of U.S. history to ESL learners. It includes an outline for a two-year curriculum with a regular weekly cycle, as well as a close look at strategies and tested activities intended to facilitate understanding of this complex topic and to encourage students to participate beyond passive reception. Specific cultural issues of teaching U.S. history in China are discussed, including issues of ideology and censorship.

Unit Plan: Examining The Struggle For An Equitable Education System In Portland, Oregon, Melinda Gale, Oliver Brown

African American History in Oregon: Lesson Plans

This unit is designed for five 90 minute periods in US history or African American history.

Using an array of primary sources, as well as select secondary texts, students will investigate the history of segregation, desegregation, and multicultural school reforms in Portland, Oregon. The unit will explore the relationship between local community organizations and Portland Public Schools, having students evaluate the effectiveness of both groups in terms of school reform. In the culminating project students will create a three-minute policy proposal that they present as testimony in a Portland Public Schools Board meeting.

Expanding The Literary Enterprise: How We Experience The Texts Of The Advanced Placement English Literature And Composition Curriculum, Molly Ostrow

Honors Theses

How we read the texts of the Advanced Placement English Literature and Composition curriculum.