Curriculum and Instruction Commons^™

In-Betweenness: Religion And Conflicting Visions Of Literacy, Loukia K. Sarroub

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

In this article, I examine the multiple uses of religious and secular text at school, home, and in the community. Specifically, I focus on how Yemeni American high school girls employ religious, Arabic, and secular texts as a means for negotiating home and school worlds. The frame of reference—in-betweenness—is a powerful heuristic with which the contextual uses of texts and language among the Yemeni American students can be delineated. In-betweenness signifies the immediate adaptation of one’s performance or identity to one’s textual, social, cultural, and physical surroundings. During 1997–1999, I conducted ethnographic fieldwork in the Yemeni and Arab community in …

Interpersonal And Pedagogical Communication: An Argument For Natural Communication Practices In The Romanian Efl Classroom, Dana-Anca Cehan

MA TESOL Collection

The paper explores aspects of EFL classroom discourse in the Romanian context and pleads for the use and cultivation of natural communication practices and relevant language behavior in the classroom.

Viewing classroom discourse not only in pedagogical terms but also as a social event, the paper provides a dual perspective on the varied EFL classroom discourse strategies. Some characteristic classroom discourse features, such as its micro-functions, language switching and typical turn-taking are examined and compared to the characteristics of natural encounters. It is argued that the language teachers who ascribe to interpersonal goals in classroom discourse can enhance their students’ …

Applications Of The I-Thou-It Framework To Teaching English As A Foreign Language In Macedonia, Zora Busovska

MA TESOL Collection

This paper is based on David Hawkins’ framework of the I-Thou-It with an expanded and personalized interpretation. It aims at defining more precisely the roles of the I, the Thou, and the It in the author’s classroom. The paper also cites research related to this framework and compares the findings, differences and similarities of author’s research with those of other researchers. The paper examines each of the roles and the interplay that takes place between and among them.

The paper explains the advantages of the subject-centered classroom, i.e. dominance of the It. Thus, the emphasis of the paper is on …

Exploiting The Auditory, Visual, And Kinesthetic Modalities In The Language Lab, Christine P. Brennan Mori

MA TESOL Collection

The primary purpose of this paper is to introduce new methods of maximizing the traditional language lab by overlaying a framework of the perceptual modalities on different classroom activities.

Question Forms And Their Use: A Self Reflective Examination Of The Use Of Questions And Feedback In Two Self Observed Taught Lessons, Chris Mangham

MA TESOL Collection

This project is a self reflective study examining my use of question forms in two self observed lessons. The second lesson having been planned and taught in a way that was informed by findings resulting from the first lesson. The question forms examined were taken from a variety of sources and are defined in this paper. The main aim of the project was to discover if, through awareness of how I use questions, it was possible to increase the fluency of student responses. A further aim was to see if students were able to use more of their language skills …

The Moorish Influence On Spanish Language, Civilization, And Culture, Tommy Genoris Erwin

MA TESOL Collection

This project examines the vast contributions made by Moors to the Spanish language, civilization and culture. The project will also try to clarify as to whom the Moors were, where they came from, and the specific contributions that they made during lengthy rule of Spain. This project is divided into five major sections. The introduction explains why this topic was chosen and the audience for whom the information is intended. The second section explores the background, achievements and contributions that were made by the Moors during their 800 (eight hundred) year domination of Spain. The third section addresses more specifically, …

Simplification And Personalization Of French Grammar, Regina Dee

MA TESOL Collection

The materials included in this project have been developed as a result of my emerging understanding of French grammar since I began studying it in 1976. I began teaching a French Activities class in 1986 to eighth graders at St. Andrews and third and fourth graders at an elementary school in Baltimore as a student at Morgan State University. While I was completing my student teaching at Baltimore City College Preparatory School, I found that my students had difficulties understanding textbook explanations. I therefore began to create my own explanations during sessions when students came for after school help. I …

The Role Of Nifl Content Standards And Casas Competencies In An Esl Adult Education Teacher’S Course Development, Mary Anne Sullivan

MA TESOL Collection

This project explores the relevance of the National Institute of Literacy (NIFL) Equipped for the Future (EFF) Content Standards to an Adult Education ESL Teacher’s course development and the prioritization of the CASAS competencies in an Adult Education ESL Teacher’s course development. It examines their role among other sources of input for teacher course development. And finally it concludes that the degree of implementation of the EFF Content Standards and CASAS competencies is dependent on the appropriateness to the context.

Reading Your Way Into Culture: A Materials Development Project, Marie Nestingen

MA TESOL Collection

The focus of this paper is to help beginning Spanish foreign language students increase and improve their reading skills in the target language while learning about some of the Hispanic culture and customs in Guatemala. In this paper I will combine the two, explaining and giving examples of how students, novice language learners, can learn more about the target language culture while improving their reading skills in the target language.

A Teaching Resource For English Education In Japanese Elementary Schools, Jody Shimoda

MA TESOL Collection

Instruction in English in elementary schools in Japan was mandated by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology in 2002 and is being rapidly implemented in schools across the nation. This paper describes the development of a Teaching Resource for use in teaching English in Japanese elementary schools. The Resource is based on almost a decade of teaching experience in Japanese schools by the author, the shared experience of colleagues, and the concepts derived from the published literature on language development and instruction. The content of the Resource is discussed within the framework of Ministry guidelines, is conceptually …

Teaching Negotiation: The Choices, Ljerka Sedlan Konig

MA TESOL Collection

This paper discusses the choices for teaching business skills in an elective negotiation skills course in the graduate program for entrepreneurs at the Department of Economics, University of Osijek. The paper first describes the author's teaching context. Then, it offers the author's views of learning and teaching, and discusses the relationship between students and the material they learn, between students and teacher, between individual students as well as the relationship the student has with himself . Next, the theoretical frameworks of Reflective Model, Experiential Learning and Reflective Teaching are presented. In the third chapter, the paper discusses techniques and materials …

Opening The Classroom Door To Vocabulary Learning, Karl Finseth

MA TESOL Collection

This paper details my effort to focus my attention on the learning of my students and to help each student see his or her own learning. Limiting the focus of my study to vocabulary learning, I describe my attempt to develop activities which would help students learn new words in the classroom and, subsequently, to appreciate this learning for themselves. I explain how, after a rather troubling start, I turned to a combination of literature research, classroom experimentation, reflective writing, and student feedback in order to learn how to facilitate my students’ vocabulary learning. Following a description of my findings, …

Creating The Fluent, Confident Writer: Innovative Techniques For Esl Writing Courses, Prudence Ingerman

MA TESOL Collection

ESL students are usually concerned with writing with no errors and this built-in critical editor stifles the rich writing potential which all students have. Through creating a safe environment and activities which nurture the creative spirit, it is possible to limit this editor to infrequent but necessary appearances and encourage writing large quantities of ungraded material. This paper suggests techniques for building a classroom community, including the use of a scripted writing process, responding to instructor writing and one-to-one conferencing. The essay also demonstrates how fluency can be achieved via a weekly silent class, mind-mapping and copious free-writing. These techniques …

Identifying Gifted African-American Students: A Case Study Of A Louisiana School System, Donna Lynn Sutton

Doctoral Dissertations

In 1995, the Office for Civil Rights conducted a compliance review of the Bayou Parish School System (a pseudonym) in Louisiana. The review revealed a statistically significant underrepresentation of African-American students in the Bayou Parish gifted program. This case study examined how African-American representation in a gifted program may be increased through the use of research-based interventions implemented by the Office for Civil Rights.

The researcher used both quantitative and qualitative methods to collect and analyze data. Documents from the Office for Civil Rights and the Louisiana Department of Education were examined to: (a) show patterns of African-American and nonminority …

Multicultural Novels And Activities: An English And Language Arts Curriculum For Middle And High School Students In The Yakima Valley, Karen A. Jenner Gemeinhart

All Graduate Projects

Research in the area of education concludes that both white and underserved populations benefit from the use of multicultural education. The curriculum provided in this project is founded on the research findings of educational specialists who outline these benefits. The use of multicultural education as a way to connect students to the curriculum is crucial in providing all students with an equal opportunity to learn. The Yakima Valley in Washington State is home to a number of Hispanic and Native American students who reflect a lack of academic achievement on standardized tests that assess literacy. Theories and strategies for teaching …

A Handbook For First Grade Children's Literature: A Teacher's Guide To Pre-Reading Comprehension Strategies For The Second Language Learner, Tiffany Lynn Wise

All Graduate Projects

Relevant literature pertaining to reading, reading comprehension, comprehension evaluation, characteristics of readers, findings regarding strategy instruction and its use on comprehension, and specific pre-reading strategies was studied. The need for second language learners to receive comprehension strategies in order to develop schemata, activate prior knowledge, and develop meaning for unknown vocabulary was noted. Teaching specific reading strategies to increase the second language learner's comprehension of a text was emphasized. A handbook of pre-reading strategies to be used with first grade learners was created for teacher use. The handbook outlines each pre-reading strategy, its purpose, and the procedure to follow when …

Promoting Literacy Through Literature And Content-Based Radings In The Secondary English-As-A-Second-Language Classroom In Conjunction With The In Contact 1 Curriculum: A Handbook For Educators, Tanya Lynn Adamson

All Graduate Projects

The use of literature and content-based readings in the secondary ESL classroom was researched. The research suggests that providing second language learners with meaningful readings that provide for comprehensible input will build schema and background knowledge that will help them to be successful in their content area classes. A handbook for educators was created to supplement the existing curriculum, as well as to show readers that this type of supplemental reading handbook can be created by anyone to be used with any type of ESL curriculum. This handbook contains both literature and content-based resources that coincide with the themes and …

A Secondary Multicultural Discipline Based Art Education General Art Education, Rex Randall Deloney

All Graduate Projects

With the growing number of multicultural populations in Washington State schools, there is a need to provide all students with an understanding and appreciation of diverse cultures. The goal of the Discipline Based Art Education is to enhance understanding of other cultures through the study of art. This project was developed to foster multicultural awareness among students and to help them better understand themselves, their communities, and the world in which they live. Through a multicultural discipline based art education curriculum, students will be able to see themselves and the personal connections they have with what is being taught in …

Nsu Graduate Teacher Education Program (Gtep) Master's Degrees, Educational Specialist Degrees, Certification Programs, Recertification Courses Program Brochure 2002, Nova Southeastern University

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education and School of Criminal Justice College Archive

No abstract provided.

Effective Bilingual Practices For Early Childhood Reading And Language Arts :/ A Professional Development Seminar And Model Thematic Unit For English-Spanish Bilingual Educators, Priscila Palomino De Piper

Graduate Research Papers

This project provides a workshop framework for the implementation of effective bilingual practices in early childhood reading and language arts. It is designed as a series of workshops for English-Spanish bilingual educators, with the purpose of providing ideas and strategies to support the development of reading and language arts programs in both languages. It is important to point out that the success of a language program relies not only on excellent research, but also on the support of parents, teachers, administrators and the whole community. It is important to believe that no language is superior to any other, that the …

Bridging The Gap: Connecting School And Community With Service Learning, Sarah K. Edwards

Teacher Education Faculty Publications

Why do I even look for teaching ideas in the education catalogs that fill my mailbox? I know that these offerings of prefabricated units and generic novel activities will not satisfy the desires of my students. Looking around my orderly classroom, I confess that I am probably the only one who adores the posters with colorful scenes from my favorite poems. During my past ten years as an English teacher, I have found myself in a mental tug-of-war as to how to connect my students with the state curriculum standards. Finally, in the abyss of Internet lessons and teaching seminars, …

A Resource Guide For Bridging The Cultural Gap Between Hispanic Parents And Their Children's Teachers In An Elementary School Setting, Shawna D. Greene

All Graduate Projects

The purpose of this project was to increase the involvement of Hispanic parents to result in higher student achievement in the elementary school. Research on cultural barriers of Hispanic parent involvement and the programs that schools have implemented to overcome cultural barriers was examined. A resource guide for elementary school teachers was developed in order to help teachers find ways to overcome the cultural barriers of parent involvement in schools.

An Effective Educational Development Curriculum For Mexican-American High School Students, Adam Castro

Theses Digitization Project

The purpose of this project was to design a year long course curriculum in educational development. The curriculum will serve the educational needs of many Mexican-American high school students who academically need it.

Introducing A Foreign Language Experience Into The Elementary Curriculum: A Flex Curriculum Handbook, Deborah Michelle Doherty

All Graduate Projects

A handbook has been created to assist elementary educators integrating Spanish into their curriculum. Lesson plans, activities, and supplemental materials are developed based on The Standards for Foreign Language Leaming, recommended and published by the National Association of Foreign Language Teachers and are aligned to meet the Essential Academic Leaming Requirements (EALRs) adopted by The Washington State Commission on Student Leaming. Current literature and research involving the benefits of teaching foreign language to elementary children are studied.

Incorporating Multicultural Children's Literature Into A Primary Curriculum, Cristian Rene Newell

All Graduate Projects

The purpose of the project was to provide primary teachers with a multicultural literature resource book. To accomplish this a review of literature was completed to investigate the need for, and value of using multicultural literature within a primary classroom. How to judge quality multicultural literature was also reviewed. The project consisted of general lesson plans to use with multicultural literature, twenty specific activities to use with multicultural literature, and annotated book lists of multicultural literature. The activities incorporate Reading, Writing, Communication, and Mathematics Essential Academic Learning Requirements for the state of Washington. Literature is representative of several cultures and …

Literature-Based Instruction And Post-Reading Activities To Enhance The Basal Reading Program, Susan J. Vertrees

All Graduate Projects

The focus ofthis project was to create a resource manual to use in the reading program with students learning a second language. The project implements a balanced reading curriculum with an emphasis on literature-based instruction. Trade books and post-reading activities are the highlights of the resource manual. Using literature in the classroom with literature-based instruction techniques has been shown to have a positive impact on students. The purpose of reading instruction is to increase reading skills as well as the joy ofreading.

A Model Secondary-Level Spanish Introductory Curriculum In Alignment With The Washington State Essential Academic Learning Requirements, Frederick William Lenard

All Graduate Projects

The purpose of this project was to develop a curriculum to be used during the first weeks of a secondary-level beginning Spanish class. To accomplish this purpose, a review of related literature was conducted. Additionally, related information and materials from selected sources were obtained and analyzed in order to find out what professional Spanish teachers considered to be a required part of the beginning curriculum. The curriculum was written with the Washington State Essential Academic Learning Requirements (EALRs) in mind to show that Spanish teachers can and do support the EALRs.

Reading Comprehension Strategies For Esl K-3 Students Utilizing Multicultural Children's Literature, Ann K. Rizor

All Graduate Projects

The purpose of this project was to develop a teacher's handbook to aid in reading instruction for students grades K-3 who are learning English as their second language. To accomplish this purpose a review ofliterature was conducted on the topics of second language acquisition, second language reading, and the use of multicultural literature. Additionally, information and materials from selected sources were obtained and analyzed.

Cultural Awareness Activities For Teachers, Martin F. Wittman

All Graduate Projects

We live and grow in an increasingly diverse society, and it is as important for school age students to understand people who are different, as it is for them to understand math or science. The purpose ofthis project was to develop a variety of cultural awareness activities for use by K-12 teachers in the Bethel School District in the State of Washington. All activities were aligned with the tools and concepts of Bethel's employee cultural awareness model and presented in the form of a handbook. The intent of the handbook was to provide a format for teachers which could be …

Internet-Enhanced Esl Education : A Literature Review, Yu Cao

Graduate Research Papers

This paper intends to present some of the most current research on the tremendous benefits which the Internet can provide to ESL education. Some Internet applications which can be used as active teaching and learning tools in the ESL classrooms are being presented in this paper, such as electronic mail, electronic discussion group or "lists," electronic forum, chat room, and keypal. Additionally, this paper intends to bring educators' attention to those issues which affect language learners' interests in using the Internet in their learning. Issues include the lack of training, accessibility of technology, and lack of feedback.