Curriculum and Instruction Commons^™

Goal Setting And Student Achievement: A Longitudinal Study, Aleidine Kramer Moeller, Janine M. Theiler, Chaorong Wu

Department of Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education: Faculty Publications

The connection between goals and student motivation has been widely investigated in the research literature, but the relationship of goal setting and student achievement at the classroom level has remained largely unexplored. This article reports the findings of a 5-year quasi-experimental study examining goal setting and student achievement in the high school Spanish language classroom. The implementation of LinguaFolio, a portfolio that focuses on student self-assessment, goal setting, and collection of evidence of language achievement, was introduced into 23 high schools with a total of 1,273 students. By using a hierarchical linear model, researchers were able to analyze the relationship …

Contextualizing The Path To Academic Success: Culturally And Linguistically Diverse Students Gaining Voice And Agency In Higher Education, Melissa Holmes, Cristina Fanning, Amanda Morales, Pedro Espinoza, Socorro Herrera

Department of Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education: Faculty Publications

This ethnographic case study documents the experiences of culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) first-generation immigrant students as they developed their sense of voice and personal agency at a predominantly White, Midwestern university. The study is framed within the larger context of an ongoing, longitudinal study on the BESITOS (Bilingual/Bicultural Education Students Interacting To Obtain Success) model of recruitment and retention (Herrera & Morales, 2005; Herrera, Morales, Holmes, & Terry, 2011-2012), which was developed in 1999 to address the multifaceted assets and needs of Latina/o learners in higher education. The model takes into account literature on CLD student recruitment and retention …

Growing Effective Cld Teachers For Today’S Classrooms Of Cld Children, Gayla Lohfink, Amanda Morales, Gail Shroyer, Sally Yahnke

Department of Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education: Faculty Publications

Using a case study design, this investigation examined the effective teaching characteristics of nontraditional, culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) student teachers placed in rural, elementary schools with high populations of Latino/a students. Data collected reflected high percentages of effective teaching characteristics in multiple domains with specific indicators reflective of consistent teaching over time. A discussion of these findings considered aspects within the distance-delivery model that facilitated the CLD participants’ development of effective teaching and noted (1) consistent leadership, (2) explicit teacher instruction within CLD school settings, and (3) the strong cohesive nature of the CLD participants’ cohort as positively affecting …

From Remediation To Acceleration: Recruiting, Retaining, And Graduating Future Culturally And Linguistically Diverse (Cld) Educators, Socorro Herrera, Amanda Morales, Melissa Holmes, Dawn Herrera Terry

Department of Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education: Faculty Publications

This ethnographic case study explores one mid-western state university’s response to the challenge of culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD), especially Latino/a, student recruitment and retention. BESITOS (Bilingual/ Bicultural Education Students Interacting To Obtain Success) is an integrated teacher preparation program implemented at a predominantly White university that seeks to both increase Latino/a students’ initial access to higher education and provide institutional support to facilitate a high rate of graduation. The researchers consider key elements of the BESITOS program model as they relate to and support the sociocultural, linguistic, academic, and cognitive dimensions of the CLD student biography. For each dimension, …

Integrating Mathematical Modeling For Undergraduate Pre-Service Science Education Learning And Instruction In The Middle School Classroom, William Robertson, David Carrejo

Selected Works Temporary Series

El Paso is a bicultural, bilingual community with a 76.6% Hispanic population. Combining El Paso’s population with that of its sister city, Ciudad Juárez, Mexico, our community is the largest metropolitan area on any international border in the world. Students at the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) are mostly female, and 50% of the total student population is made up of first-generation college students. These demographics are accompanied by low socioeconomic and educational factors: 23.6% of local families live below the poverty level, compared to 12.5% nationally; 32.9% of 25-year-olds have not graduated from high school; 19% of …

Integrating Mathematical Modeling For Undergraduate Pre-Service Science Education Learning And Instruction In The Middle School Classroom, William Robertson, David Carrejo

Departmental Papers (TE)

El Paso is a bicultural, bilingual community with a 76.6% Hispanic population. Combining El Paso’s population with that of its sister city, Ciudad Juárez, Mexico, our community is the largest metropolitan area on any international border in the world. Students at the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) are mostly female, and 50% of the total student population is made up of first-generation college students. These demographics are accompanied by low socioeconomic and educational factors: 23.6% of local families live below the poverty level, compared to 12.5% nationally; 32.9% of 25-year-olds have not graduated from high school; 19% of …

Connecting Rather Than Colliding: When American And Chinese Rhetorical Styles Meet In The University Classroom, Karen Shea

English as a Second Language Faculty Publications & Research

Many American teachers can see differences between the way their domestic and international students organize an argument; fewer would be able to explain these differences. Due to the recent wave of Chinese students enrolling in American universities, many professors are grappling with cultural differences ranging from the unfamiliar classroom behavior to the diverse rhetorical styles of these students. Misunderstandings may form a rift between the students, who write according to their own Eastern rhetorical upbringing, and the professors, who assign and assess the writing based on their Western rhetorical tradition. As a result, many professors are looking for ways to …

Catalyst: A Social Justice Forum, Volume One, Issue One, Shane Willson, Landon S. Bevier, Rachael E. Gabriel, Taylor Krcek, Alaina Elizabeth Smith

Catalyst: A Social Justice Forum

It is with great pride that we present to you the inaugural issue of Catalyst: A Social Justice Forum. Here we have attempted to create an innovative, peer-reviewed space in which people from numerous disciplines, or even those claiming no discipline, can present research, multimedia, and art aimed at furthering the ideals of social justice, broadly defined. Social justice is not a concept owned by the academy, for attempts to create a more just world can come from many professions, or even from no profession at all. By applying the traditionally academic peer-review process to work done by activists, artists, …

Supporting Native Indian Preschoolers And Their Families Family–School–Community Partnerships, M. Susan Mcwilliams, Tami Maldonado-Mancebo, Paula S. Szczepaniak, Jacqueline Jones

Teacher Education Faculty Publications

In this urban midwestern public school district, families of Native Indian students, pre-K through grade 12, attend four multigenerational gatherings like this one during the school year—one of a number of events orchestrated by the Native Indian Centered Education (NICE) program. NICE is a program in the school district that partners with families to provide Native-centric educational opportunities for preschool children. Family events such as the storytelling activity in the opening vignette represent trends in early childhood education: building family-school-community partnerships to enhance learning and build family resources. The all- Native-Indian preschool program is unusual and rare in urban areas. …

Improving Educational Outcomes Of English Language Learners In Schools And Programs In Boston Public Schools, Miren Uriarte, Faye Karp, Laurie Gagnon, Rosann Tung, Sarah Rustan, Jie Chen, Michael Berardino, Pamela Stazesky, Eileen De Los Reyes, Antonieta Bolomey

Gastón Institute Publications

Using 4 years of student-level demographic, enrollment and testing and school-level characteristics, this study analyzes the enrollment and outcomes of English Language Learners (ELLs) in Boston Public School between SY2006 and SY2009 and assess the relative impact of individual and school level factors in testing outcomes of ELLs. The study reports on the improvement in ELL dropout rates and testing outcomes during the period of observation. It reports also on the outcomes of ELLs at different levels of English proficiency and finds (1) higher dropout rates and lower testing performance among low English proficiency students; (2) a minimal proportion of …

Learning From Consistently High Performing And Improving Schools For English Language Learners In Boston Public Schools, Rosann Tung, Virginia Diez, Laurie Gagnon, Miren Uriarte, Pamela Stazesky, Eileen De Los Reyes, Antonieta Bolomey

Gastón Institute Publications

Against a backdrop of increasing BPS ELL enrollment, district ELL leadership transitions, state and federal policies affecting ELL education, and with the knowledge that many teachers and administrators within the Boston Public Schools are expert practitioners with ELL students, we addressed the following research questions:

• In which BPS schools were ELL students performing at a consistently high level or showing steady improvement during SY2006-SY2009?
• What were some of the practices that these schools’ staffs credited with their success with ELL students during SY2006-SY2009?
• Which of the practices identified by school staff were shared among the selected schools?

Through case study …

A Distance-Delivered Teacher Education Program For Rural Culturally And Linguistically Diverse Teacher Candidates, Gayla Lohfink, Amanda Morales, Gail Shroyer, Sally Yahnke, Cecilia Hernandez

Department of Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education: Faculty Publications

This article describes a collaborative, distance-delivered, teacher preparation program for rural, culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) teacher candidates. Multiple institutions partnered with one university in order to diversify the teaching force in the region and meet the needs of CLD students living there. In describing the program's design and implementation phases, a focus on cultural responsiveness to the candidates ' needs, their rural settings, and high populations of Latino/a students in the rural areas in which they were trained is presented. Assessment of each implementation phase guided program practice for the participants ' training as effective teachers. Relevant discussion indicates …

The Effects Of Teaching The Academic Language Of Language Arts To Secondary Long-Term English Learners, Mary Soto

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

While the majority of English language learners are found in elementary schools, an alarming number of these students are entering secondary schools. These secondary students are long-term English learners, students who have been in U.S. schools for seven years or longer. Long-term English learners struggle with academic success, and educators need to find ways to support them. In this qualitative study, the effects of teaching academic vocabulary and concepts to 10th grade Hispanic long-term English learners in a language arts class at a large, South Texas high school were explored. The researcher observed students as they were involved in five …

Let's Talk About Race: Developing Anti-Bias Curricula In Elementary Schools, Harper Keenan

Graduate Student Independent Studies

This study investigates the theories and potential teaching practices for implementing an anti-bias curriculum in today's elementary schools. Drawing on the work of Louise Derman-Sparks (1989, 1997, and 2011), Frances Kendall (1996), Gary Howard (2006), Ann Pelo (2000 and 2008), six characteristics of effective anti-bias curricula are explored and analyzed as frameworks for developing curricula. In addition, the study chronicles the experience of one grade level team of four teachers working to transform the social studies curriculum they were given into one that is more intentionally anti-bias. Finally, it offers lessons learned and implications for future curriculum development.

Teaching Social Justice Through The Lens Of Multicultural Education, Alana Cimillo

Pell Scholars and Senior Theses

With public school populations growing in socio-economic and racial diversity, as projected by the Census Bureau, there is a clear need for an understanding of this diversity to occur at the early childhood level. In order to truly adopt multicultural education as an integral part of a student’s academic growth, teachers must consider the meaning of “cultural competence”. In the first years of a student’s education, fundamental values can be developed as the building blocks for future culturally responsive human beings. This presentation will review concrete evidence that supports the incorporation of multicultural education early childhood classrooms.

A Critical Look At Four Multicultural Reform Efforts In One Urban College Of Education, Mary Gove, Dinah Volk, Kristine Lynn Still, Grace Hui-Chen Huang, Sashelle Thomas-Alexander

Teacher Education Faculty Publications

The article describes multicultural reform projects at an urban college of education including analyses of student's descriptions of their experiences in urban schools, the results of a faculty diversity self-study group and issues arising from culturally responsive pedagogy in an early childhood teaching class. The author's assertion that diversity education is an essential part of teacher education is discussed, and the importance of continuous critical analysis of teacher education is emphasized.

Indigenous Studies In All Schools, Grace Sarra

Aboriginal Policy Research Consortium International (APRCi)

Cherbourg State School is approximately 300 km northwest of Brisbane. It is situated in an Aboriginal community at Cherbourg with approximately 250 students. At the Cherbourg State School, the aim was to generate good academic outcomes for all students from kindergarten to Year 7 and to nurture a strong and positive sense of what it means to be Aboriginal in today’s society. In this paper, I will discuss modernism and postmodernism in indigenous studies and how this has impacted on the design and development of the Indigenous Studies Programme at the Cherbourg State School. The programme was designed to provide …

Summer Bridge Program At The University Of San Francisco For Conditionally Admitted Chinese Students, Adrienne M. Bergenfeld

Capstone Collection

While serving as a graduate intern at the University of San Francisco, I concluded that the conditional admit Chinese students were missing an essential element for academic success.

To insure a higher success rate for these students, I am proposing the creation of a Summer Bridge Program to bridge the gap between pedagogical learning and experiential learning. The program will focus on the acquisition of English as well as successful acculturation into the university. This “Bridge Program for International Students” will help students understand United States’ academic culture and the expectations of the university, introduce students to USF resources and …

English As A Foreign Language Professional Development Practicum: Placing Skilled Teachers Where They Can Grow A Program Proposal For The Schools Of Cañadilla, S.A. Santiago, Chile, Ellen Marie Dizzia

Capstone Collection

Chile is currently making great investments in English as a foreign language (EFL) programming as a means for international communication and commerce. The following mobility program has been designed for family run Cañadilla, S.A. to connect qualified, concerned EFL professionals with semi-private primary and secondary schools in Santiago. An in depth needs assessment was performed in their eight schools under Cañadilla’s Coordinator of English programs to determine the most efficient way to begin improvement. Professional development has been named a cornerstone in this process. This program intends to draw learned, practiced EFL teachers to participate in a hands-on professional development …

Educational Effects Of Implementing A K-12 Dual Language Instruction Program In A Community With A High Percentage Of Hispanics And Hispanic English Language Learners, Mario A. Ferron

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

Hispanic students have historically exhibited an educational achievement gap in a variety of indicators when compared with grade-level peers from other racial, ethnic, and linguistic backgrounds. One of the goals of bilingual education research has been the identification of programs and instructional practices that have been shown to be effective in closing the academic achievement gap for Hispanic students. Therefore, the goal of this study was to examine the academic programs available in one school district in order to identify which program was most effective in helping Hispanic students reach full educational parity with their native English speaking peers as …

Personalismo, Small Schools, And Latino Students' Academic Success, Isabel Mesa Collins

College of Education Theses and Dissertations

A growing body of research indicates that Latino students continue to struggle academically presenting educators and school leaders with serious concerns about a cultural achievement gap. Guided by the work of Lee & Loeb, (2000); Lee & Freidkin, (2007) and Stevens, (2008) who have examined small personalized learning communities, this paper examines the concept of personalismo as a conduit for establishing a platform that may help narrow the achievement gap within the Latino population in the public school system. Through a series of T-Tests, conducted in two small public schools with varying levels of personalismo, within a Chicago Public School …

Intersections: The Schooling Experiences Of African-American Females Inolved In Long-Term Foster Care And Their Transition Into Womanhood, Sonia Kennedy

College of Education Theses and Dissertations

African-American girls are entering foster care and experiencing longer stays in a system that was not intended to facilitate adolescents transitioning into adulthood. For African American adolescent girls many remain in care indefinitely and move from one temporary foster home, group home and institution to another, with little stability or preparation for the future. Although the Adoption and Safe Families Act (AFSA) of 1994 and other policy reforms were designed to guide the temporary placement of children in foster care, this has not been the case, particularly for African American females. Upon entrance into foster care, African American adolescent females …

A Case Study On Perspectives, Whitney Tallarico

Senior Honors Projects

The Rhode Island Training School becomes a home to juvenile offenders of the law.  Home, in so far as it is a place that they sleep, eat, and spend a lot of time in, as well as the atmosphere in which learning and growth occur during the adolescent phase of their lives.  There is a very high rate of released inmates who return to the facility for things like running away from group homes, not checking in with their parole officers, or other misdemeanors.  It is my belief that this is, at least in part, due to the fact that …

Multicultural Education In The Music Classroom: Definitions, Methods, And Motives, Candace Rhnea Stafford-Davis

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study aimed to understand the multicultural teaching experiences of music teachers in the Fayetteville and Springdale public school districts through the lens of James Banks' four approaches to curriculum reform. The research was intended to add to the limited literature presently found on the definition of multicultural music education and how this type of education is implemented. The study also increased knowledge of teacher motives for implementing multicultural education in the music classroom and highlight challenges that lie within implementation. Purposive sampling was used and in an attempt to get an information rich sample, two schools were chosen from …

Does A Co-Learner Delivery Model In A Mathematics Methods Course Affect Pre-Service Teacher Candidates’ Self-Efficacy In Teaching Mathematics?,, John J. Ribeiro, Denise Demagistris

Teacher Education

This study is related to a previous study (Ribeiro, 2009) that examined teachers’ perceptions of teaching self-efficacy. In the first study the sample consisted of two groups of teachers that took the same professional development course in mathematics. The comparison group took the course in their school district with other teachers and the experimental group took the course with pre-service teachers in a university classroom. After completing the course, both groups were measured in three dimensions of teaching self-efficacy: student engagement, instructional strategies, and classroom climate. Findings indicated that although both groups had significant gains in self-efficacy toward teaching mathematics …

The Need To Create Culturally Responsive Teachers: Implications For Teacher Education Programs, Cass Griffin

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

Using nine reflections as a centerpiece, this thesis aims is to inform readers about the power that an international travel experience and/or practica in dual-language environments can have in becoming a more effective teacher, a culturally responsive teacher.  From personal experience in a both settings, I think I am now better able to relate to students with culturally or linguistically diverse backgrounds because I have been in a similar situation. Students with diverse backgrounds (that are different from their teacher) may have extra difficulty communicating or expressing their thoughts and ideas. Teachers need to recognize these difficulties and respond appropriately …

Relationship To Place: Positioning Aboriginal Knowledge And Perspectives In Classroom Pedagogies, Neil Harrison, Maxine Greenfield

Aboriginal Policy Research Consortium International (APRCi)

This project is based on research conducted with 12 schools in New South Wales, Australia. It examines how each school incorporates Aboriginal perspectives in its Kindergarten to Year 6 program with a view to identifying quality practice. As we inter- viewed teachers in these schools, it became clear that there is considerable confusion over the difference between Aboriginal perspectives and Aboriginal knowledge with both concepts being used interchangeably to teach syllabus content and information about Aboriginal people. We endeavour to clarify these concepts and to suggest how teachers might incorporate Aboriginal knowledge in their programs, without recreating some of the …

Cultivating Knowledge In The School Garden: New Ways Of Teaching Literacy To Esl Students, Michele Durivage

MA TESOL Collection

My thesis project includes a combination of materials development and classroom-based research. In my paper, I explore existing garden-related curricula, and create original garden-based lesson plans to teach literacy to fourth grade ESL students. This curriculum development project contributes to the field of ESL in its innovative garden-based pedagogy. The field study took place during the spring semester of 2009 at Increase Miller Elementary School in Westchester County, New York. Using nature as inspiration for writing descriptive essays and poetry, the ESL students at Increase Miller produced imaginative writing pieces, using their own voices to express their thoughts. The students’ …

How Esol Teachers Become Aware Of Communicative Peace, Josette Leblanc

MA TESOL Collection

This paper examines the implications that the relationship between teacher language awareness and communicative peace may have on educational programs for teachers of English for speakers of other languages (ESOL). The evaluation begins by analyzing proposals set out by the applied peace linguist Francisco Gomes de Matos, who suggests that ESOL teachers should teach communicative peace as an element of communicative competence, and also that education programs should provide training to support this approach. By juxtaposing current literature on structural and linguistic violence with Gomes de Matos’ classroom techniques, the hypothesis is made that teachers who would teach communicative peace …

Sustained Silent Reading In The Esl Classroom: The Silent Motivator?, Megan V. Ahonen

MA TESOL Collection

This classroom based research paper investigates the use of Sustained Silent Reading (SSR) in the ESL classroom. The purpose is to determine if implementing a SSR program would increase students’ interest and desire to read in English outside of the classroom for pleasure. This paper will share background information on the students and school, different reading inventory samples and questionnaires with student responses, and current findings on SSR compared to my own personal findings. The final chapter is devoted to roadblocks and limitations encountered along the way throughout this study