Curriculum and Instruction Commons^™

Supporting Muslim Students In Secular Public Schools, Candace Schlein, Elaine Chan

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

This article discusses the findings of a study examining the challenges and opportunities of supporting Muslim students in secular public schools. Education is explored as a multifaceted interplay between home and family life, community resources, school programs and policies, and classroom lessons to investigate the curricular experiences of Muslim students in North America. In particular, this study focuses on data gathered through interviews, informal conversations, and participant observations to draw a narrative case study of a female, Bangladeshi, Muslim student attending a comprehensive elementary and middle school. The study explores tensions and growth among this Muslim student, her parent, and …

Teacher Education For Social Justice: What’S Pupil Learning Got To Do With It?, Marilyn Cochran-Smith, Ann Marie Gleeson, Kara Mitchell

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

There are many controversies related to the increasingly widespread theme of “social justice” in teacher education, including debates about whether and/or how promoting pupils’ learning is part of this theme. This article briefly discusses the concept of teacher education for social justice in terms of pupils’ learning and then considers this notion in terms of the current press to hold teacher education accountable for learning. The article then presents the results of the “Teacher Assessment/Pupil Learning” (TAPL) study, an analysis nested inside a larger qualitative study about learning to teach over time in a preparation program with a stated social …

Barriers And Bridges To Success: Factors For Retention Of Nontraditional Mexican American Students In Teacher Education, Gail Shroyer, Sally Yahnke, Amanda Morales, Cindi Dunn, Gayla Lohfink, Pedro Espinoza

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

This paper discusses the findings of a qualitative, microethnographic case study of 15 nontraditional, Mexican American students as they completed their coursework in a 2+2 teacher education program in the Midwest. The theoretical frameworks that serve as the basis of this study are Tinto’s Model of Student Integration (Tinto, 1975, 1993), Bean’s attrition model (1980), and von Destinon’s empowerment model (1988). This integrated framework is an inclusive adaptation as it addresses the complex interaction among first-generation, Mexican American students’ backgrounds, geographical locations, and the institutions that serve them. The researchers identify characteristics of those students who persisted on to graduation, …

Colorblind Nonaccommodative Denial: Implications For Teachers’ Meaning Perspectives Toward Their Mexican-American English Learners, Socorro Herrera, Amanda Morales

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

Many parts of the United States are facing an increasing number of immigrant students. Focusing on mostly White teachers at a junior high school, which enrolls predominantly Mexican immigrant students, Socorro Herrera and Amanda R. Morales examine these teachers’ belief system. The authors identify the perspective of colorblind nonaccommodative denial among these teachers. • What is a colorblind perspective? How does it affect everyday teaching practices? • How would teachers justify their not accommodating minority students? What are the educational consequences of nonaccommodation?

Improving the learning experiences of culturally and linguistically diverse Mexican-American students in the United States is a …

Living In The Space Between Participant And Researcher As A Narrative Inquirer: Examining Ethnic Identity Of Chinese Canadian Students As Conflicting Stories To Live By, Elaine Chan

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

Schooling experiences of 1st-generation Canadians interact with cultural experiences in their immigrant households to shape a sense of ethnic identity both as Canadians and as members of an ethnic community. This long-term, school-based narrative inquiry is an examination of ways in which expectations for academic performance and behavior by teachers and peers at school and immigrant parents at home contributed to shaping the ethnic identity of an immigrant Chinese student as conflicting stories to live by. A narrative approach revealed challenges of supporting immigrant students in North American schools and contributed to understanding of the nuances of multicultural education.

Initial Impacts Of No Child Left Behind On Elementary Science Education, George Griffith,, Lawrence C. Scharmann

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

This research examines the impact of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act on elementary science education within a Midwestern state possessing strong national education measures. Elementary teachers (N = 164) responded to an online survey, which included both closed-ended and open-ended questions pertaining to science instruction and changes made in science instruction since the implementation of NCLB. More than half of these teachers indicated they have cut time from science instruction since NCLB became a law. The reason given for this decrease in science education was mainly the need to increase time for math and reading instruction.

Utilizing Peer Interactions To Promote Learning Through A Web-Based Peer Assessment System, Lan Li, Allen L. Steckelberg, Sribhagyam Srinivasan

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

Abstract: Peer assessment is an instructional strategy in which students evaluate each other’s performance for the purpose of improving learning. Despite its accepted use in higher education, researchers and educators have reported concerns such as students’ time on task, the impact of peer pressure on the accuracy of marking, and students’ lack of ability to make critical judgments about peers’ work. This study explored student perceptions of a web-based peer assessment system. Findings conclude that web-based peer assessment can be effective in minimizing peer pressure, reducing management workload, stimulating student interactions, and enhancing student understanding of marking criteria and critical …

Turning Today’S Students Into Tomorrow’S Stars, Aleidine Kramer Moeller, Janine Theiler, Silvia Betta

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

Selected Papers from the 2008 Central States Conference

Adeiline J. Moeller, Editor

Janine Theiler, Assistant Editor

Silvia Betta, Assistant Editor

1 The Important Work of Engaging Our 21st Century Learners — Toni Theisen

2 A Model for Teaching Cross-Cultural Perspectives — Susan M. Knight

3 The Stealth Approach to Critical Thinking in Beginning Spanish Classes — Deanna H. Mihaly

4 Teaching About the French Heritage of the Midwest — Randa Duvick

5 Integrating Russian Cuisine with Russian Language and Culture Classes — Marat Sanatullov

6 Preparing a Fotonovela in the Foreign Language Classroom — Carol Eiber

7 Engaging Students through …

Multicultural Education: Raj’S Story Using A Curricular Conceptual Lens Of The Particular, Vicki Ross, Elaine Chan

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

In this study, we employ a curricular conceptual lens of the particular to explore the experience of multicultural education from the perspective of an immigrant student, Raj. Using a school-based narrative inquiry approach, we learn about Raj’s experiences at the intersections of immigration and settlement, adaptation and assimilation, English-language acquisition, unemployment, poverty, family violence, and family relocation. We employ Dewey’s [(1938). Experience and education. New York: Simon & Schuster] theory of experience, Connelly and Clandinin’s [(1988). Teachers as curriculum planners: Narratives of experience. New York: Teachers College Press, Columbia] understanding of curriculum as experience, and Schwab’s [(1969). The …

A Multi-Year Program Developing An Explicit Reflective Pedagogy For Teaching Pre-Service Teachers The Nature Of Science By Ostention, Mike U. Smith, Lawrence C. Scharmann

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

This investigation delineates a multi-year action research agenda designed to develop an instructional model for teaching the nature of science (NOS) to preservice science teachers. Our past research strongly supports the use of explicit reflective instructional methods, which includes Thomas Kuhn’s notion of learning by ostention and treating science as a continuum (i.e., comparing fields of study to one another for relative placement as less to more scientific). Instruction based on conceptual change precepts, however, also exhibits promise. Thus, the investigators sought to ascertain the degree to which conceptual change took place among students (n=15) participating in the NOS instructional …

Retention Of First-Generation Mexican American Paraeducators In Teacher Education: The Juggling Act Of Nontraditional Students, Amanda Morales, Gabriela Díaz De Sabatés, Cristina Fanning, Kevin Murry

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

This paper discusses the dynamics and challenges encountered by culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) paraeducators who are participating in a 2+2, distance-delivered, teacher education program in the Midwest. The theoretical framework that serves as the basis of this case study is Thomas and Collier’s Prism Model (Collier, 19878: Collier & Thomas, 1989; Thomas & Collier, 1997), which focuses on the four essential dimensions of the student biography (linguistic, socio-cultural, academic, and cognitive). This case study should be understood as an account of the lived experiences of 30 CLD paraeducators in a unique recruitment and retention program designed to support all …

A Dynamic Professional Development School Partnership In Science Education, Lawrence C. Scharmann

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

The author describes the evolution of a traditional on-campus secondary science methods course into a dynamic field- and campus-based professional development school collaboration. Whereas science teaching methods were taught in an isolated and independent course, they are now integrated within an interdependent experiential semester that carefully integrates teaching methods, professional seminars, interpersonal relations, classroom management, reading strategies, and multicultural education into a dynamic field-based curriculum for preservice teachers. A faculty team from the Kansas State University (KSU) Department of Secondary Education conducted a series of meetings to establish a collaborative climate in which to investigate the benefits of simultaneous reform …

Student Experiences Of A Culturally Sensitive Curriculum: Ethnic Identity Development Amid Conflicting Stories To Live By, Elaine Chan

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

This study examines ways in which students’ experiences of a culturally sensitive curriculum may contribute to their developing sense of ethnic identity. It uses a narrative inquiry approach to explore students’ experiences of the interaction of culture and curriculum in a Canadian inner-city, middle-school context. It considers ways in which the curriculum may be interpreted as the intersection of the students’ home and school cultures. Teachers, administrators, and other members of the school community made efforts to be accepting of the diverse ethnic, linguistic, and religious backgrounds that students brought to the school. However, examination of students’ experiences of school …

Using Analogies To Improve The Teaching Performance Of Preservice Teachers, Mark C. James, Lawrence C. Scharmann

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

Abstract: Prior research in both education and cognitive science has identified analogy making as a powerful tool for explanation as well as a fundamental mechanism for facilitating an individual’s construction of knowledge. While a considerable body of research exists focusing on the role analogy plays in learning science concepts, relatively little is known about how instruction in the use of analogies might influence the teaching performance of preservice teachers. The primary objective of this study was to investigate the relationship between pedagogical analogy use and pedagogical reasoning ability in a sample of preservice elementary teachers (PTs), a group that …

Learning Languages In A Digital World, Aleidine Kramer Moeller, Janine M. Theiler

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

Aleidine J. Moeller, Editor
Janine Theiler, Assistant Editor

I. Embracing Technology: Tools Teacher Can Use to Improve Language Learning — Introduction to the section: Frauke Hachtmann, Katie Hayes, Leyla Masmaliyeva, Malia Perkins

1 Rich Internet Applications for Language Learning — Dennie Hoopingarner and Vineet Bansal

2 Leveraging Podcasting for Language Learning — Dan Schmit

3 Using PowerPoint Templates to Enhance Student Presentations — J. Sanford Dugan

II. Teacher Education and Professional Development: Agents of Change — Introduction to the section: Silvia Betta and Janine Theiler

4 Preparing for the ACTFL/NCATE Program Report: Three Case Studies — Susan Colville-Hall, Bonnie Fonseca-Greber, …

Informing Teacher Education Through Cross-Cultural Teaching And Learning: Dialogic Inquiry Into Japanese And Canadian School Experiences, Mitsuyo Sakamoto, Elaine Chan

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

This article examines the hermeneutic, narrative, and social co-construction of cultural understanding as two educators shared their teaching and learning experiences in Japanese and Canadian schools. Our dialogic inquiry reveals how perceptions of practices in one culture—including curricula in non-core, academic subjects, stances on student assessment, and attitudes toward extracurricular activities—were shaped by our prior school experiences. The study reveals that reconstruction of previous overseas experience and co-construction of meaning from this reconstruction can serve as a powerful means of enhancing understanding of cross-cultural issues. The reconstruction process also offers a means of engaging those who do not have international, …

Teaching Courses Online: A Review Of The Research, Mary K. Tallent-Runnels, Julie A. Thomas, William Y. Lan, Sandi Cooper, Terence C. Ahern, Shana M. Shaw, Xiaoming Liu

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

This literature review summarizes research on online teaching and learning. It is organized into four topics: course environment, learners’ outcomes, learners’ characteristics, and institutional and administrative factors. The authors found little consistency of terminology, discovered some conclusive guidelines, and identified developing lines of inquiry. The conclusions overall suggest that most of the studies reviewed were descriptive and exploratory, that most online students are nontraditional and Anglo American, and that few universities have written policies, guidelines, or technical support for faculty members or students. Asynchronous communication seemed to facilitate in-depth communication (but not more than in traditional classes), students liked to …

Teacher Experiences Of Culture In The Curriculum, Elaine Chan

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

In this study, I examined the experiences of two middle-school-level teachers as they attempted to acknowledge the ethnic, linguistic, and religious diversity of their students in their curriculum and through their teaching practices, to identify the kinds of complications and challenges they encountered in the process. I presented one particular curriculum event to explore ways in which diverse beliefs and values intersected as the teachers implemented the event.

I employed a narrative inquiry approach with an emphasis on stories to learn about the experiences of my participants. I took part in all aspects of school life, including staff meetings and …

Gaining Interpretive Competence Through Cross-Cultural Dialogue Among Teachers And Researchers, Michelle Boone, Elaine Chan

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

We examined the complexities of developing and implementing school curricula that reflect the goals for equality for students outlined in the Canadian Multiculturalism Act. Stories of teaching and learning experiences were presented to teacher-researchers as a means of generating discussion about differences in perspective pertaining to the curricular needs of an ethnically diverse student population. We articulate this ongoing inquiry about how best to meet the needs of a diverse society in terms of enhancing a sense of ‘interpretive competence’ (Conle, 1997b, Conle et al., 2000, Conle, 2000).

ACQUÉRIR LA COMPÉTENCE INTERPRÉTATIVE GRÂCE AU DIALOGUE INTERCULTUREL ENTRE ENSEIGNANTS ET CHERCHEURS--Nous …

Explicit Reflective Nature Of Science Instruction: Evolution, Intelligent Design, And Umbrellaology, Lawrence C. Scharmann, Mike U. Smith, Mark C. James, Murray Jensen

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

The investigators sought to design an instructional unit to enhance an understanding of the nature of science (NOS) by taking into account both instructional best practices and suggestions made by noted science philosopher Thomas Kuhn. Preservice secondary science teachers enrolled in a course “Laboratory Techniques in the Teaching of Science” served as participants in action research. Sources of data used to inform instructional decisions included students’ written reaction papers to the assigned readings, transcribed verbal comments made during class discussions and other in-class activities, and final reflection essays. Three iterative implementations of the instructional unit were attempted. The objectives of …

A Proactive Strategy For Teaching Evolution, Lawrence C. Scharmann

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

Biology teachers are fortunate when topics to be addressed possess inherent qualities that interest students. Classical genetics rarely fails to interest secondary school students because it is introduced at a time when they are self-absorbed with their nascent physical characteristics, emerging sexuality, and/or future athlet- ic potential. A topic like genetics is always an easier sell than would be taxonomy, for instance. How should one treat topics that traditionally are tougher to teach? A simple but effective method for self-assessing readiness to teach a particular topic is to be prepared to respond to the questions, "Why do I have to …

Improving Teacher Quality Through An On-Line Professional Development Course: A Research Study, Ekaterina Koubek, Aleidine Kramer Moeller

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

This study investigated how in-service teachers of foreign languages constructed knowledge, and how this knowledge transformed their teaching, their beliefs, and their sense of themselves as professionals in an on-line professional development course based on a constructivist approach. This article provides an overview of research on distance education, constructivism, and teacher education with findings from a multiple case study of an on-line graduate course on Instructional Planning offered through GOLDEN (German On-line Distance Education Network; http://manila.unl.edu/amoeller/golden), a collaborative professional development project of the AATG (American Association of Teachers of German; http://aatg.org/member_services/lists/aatg-l.html ), the Goethe Institut of Washington DC ( …

Raising The Bar: Encouraging High Level Thinking In Online Discussion Forums, Mary M. Christopher, Julie A. Thomas, Mary K. Tallent-Runnels

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

More universities are offering online instruction for students though we know little about effective online learning. Some have found online instruction increases student participation while others have reported that students prefer the traditional face-to-face format This study of gifted education graduate students follows the expectation that online students ought to have time to be more thoughtful with online course interactions as compared to the time-constrained interactions in a face-to-face course. Researchers evaluated students’ thinking levels (as per Bloom’s Taxonomy) in the online discussion forums required by a graduate course in gifted education. Results indicate there was no relationship between the …

Perceived Professional Needs Of Korean Science Teachers Majoring In Chemical Education And Their Preferences For Online And On-Site Training, Taehee Noh, Jeongho Cha, Sukjin Kang, Lawrence C. Scharmann

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

In this study, we investigated the perceived professional needs of Korean science teachers majoring in chemical education, and examined their preferences for online and on-site inservice teacher training programs. The results were also compared with those of preservice teachers. Participants were 120 secondary school teachers and 67 preservice teachers, whose majors were either chemical education or science education with emphasis in chemistry. A questionnaire consisting of a modified Science Teacher Inventory of Need and a section concerning respondents’ demographic information and their use of the Internet was administered. In contrast to previous studies, the perceived needs of Korean inservice and …

The Local Framing Of Latino Educational Policy, Edmund T. Hamann

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

In many parts of the country, Latino newcomers are encountering educational policies that were framed by non-Latino local leaders. This study, an ethnography of educational policy, depicts an unorthodox assemblage of policy framers from both the United States and Mexico who shaped the local education policies aimed at Latino newcomers in Dalton, GA, in the 1990s. The study considers the evolving underlying understandings of these framers and the strategies that resulted, considering also why a temporary consensus that launched an impressive initiative—the Georgia Project—ultimately

Reexamining The Role Of Cognitive Conflict In Science Concept Learning, Sukjin Kang, Lawrence C. Scharmann, Taehee Noh

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

Abstract In this study, we defined and quantified the degree of cognitive conflict induced by a discrepant event from a cognitive perspective. Based on the scheme developed, we investigated the relationship between cognitive conflict and conceptual change, and the influences of students’ cognitive characteristics on conflict in learning the concept of density. Subjects were 171 seventh-grade girls from two city middle schools in Korea. Tests regarding logical thinking ability, field dependence/independence, and meaningful learning approach were administered. A preconception test and a test of responses to a discrepant event were also administered. Computer-assisted instruction was then provided to students as …

Examining Students’ Views On The Nature Of Science: Results From Korean 6th, 8th, And 10th Graders, Sukjin Kang, Lawrence C. Scharmann, Taehee Noh

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

In this study, students’ views on the nature of science (NOS) were investigated with the use of a large-scale survey. An empirically derived multiple-choice format questionnaire was administered to 1,702 Korean 6th, 8th, and 10th graders. The questionnaire consisted of five items that respectively examined students’ views on five constructs concerning the NOS: purpose of science, definition of scientific theory, nature of models, tentativeness of scientific theory, and origin of scientific theory. Students were also asked to respond to an accompanying open-ended section for each item in order to collect information about the rationale(s) for their choices. The results indicated …

Preparing Tomorrow's Teachers To Teach With Technology: Getting Past Go In Science And Mathematics, Julie Thomas, Sandi Cooper

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

We are teacher educators (in elementary science and mathematics) who are enthusiastic about technology as a teaching tool—though it is as new to us as it is to our university colleagues. We recently led a United States Department of Education Preparing Tomorrow’s Teachers to Use Technology (PT3) grant project entitled TechLinks. In an effort to encourage peer faculty members to connect methods instruction with current technology initiatives (namely the International Society for Technology Education [ISTE], 2000, and the National Council on Accreditation of Teacher Education [NCATE], 1997), TechLinks provided faculty fellowships–$1,000 for equipment and materials and a technology assistant who …

Ethnic Identity In Transition: Chinese New Year Through The Years, Elaine Chan

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

Multiculturalism has been identified as the key educational issue of the epoch. However, despite studies acknowledging the importance of multiculturalism and multilingualism in school contexts and research that attests to the importance of teachers learning about individual students’ experiences of culture rather than generalizing knowledge about culture groups to individual students, there exists only a small, and mostly recent, literature examining ethnic identity experientially. In the spirit of work done by Phillion (1999, 2002), He (1998, 2002a, b), and Hoffman (1989) examining the complexities of factors shaping a sense of ethnic identity, I examine here the experiences of first-generation Chinese …

Constructivism: Defense Or A Continual Critical Appraisal – A Response To Gil-Pérez Et Al., Mansoor Niaz, Fouad Abd-El-Khalick, Alicia Benarroch, Liberato Cardellini, Carlos E. Laburu, NicoláS Marín, Luis A. Montes, Robert Nola, Yuri Orlik, Lawrence C. Scharmann, Chin-Chung Tsai, Georgios Tsaparlis

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

Abstract. This commentary is a critical appraisal of Gil-Pérez et al.’s (2002) conceptualization of constructivism. It is argued that the following aspects of their presentation are problematic: (a) Although the role of controversy is recognized, the authors implicitly subscribe to a Kuhnian perspective of ‘normal’ science; (b) Authors fail to recognize the importance of von Glasersfeld’s contribution to the understanding of constructivism in science education; (c) The fact that it is not possible to implement a constructivist pedagogy without a constructivist epistemology has been ignored; and (d) Failure to recognize that the metaphor of the ‘student as a developing scientist’ …