Curriculum and Instruction Commons^™

Teaching Literacy In Kindergarten, Dawnette Diane Leslie

Graduate Research Papers

This study examined ways of teaching literacy in the kindergarten. Benefits and problems associated with teaching reading in kindergarten were discussed. Guidelines were presented for teachers implementing literacy instruction in kindergartens. Conclusions were drawn from the literature and recommendations were made for teaching reading to kindergarten students.

Designing A Web Page To Facilitate Communication, Lori B. Lee

Graduate Research Papers

The purpose of this action research project was to build a teacher-controlled web page that would facilitate communication between home, community, and school. The web site contained information about administration, athletics (including schedules), honor roll and awards, faculty and staff information, advisor/advisee programs, academic information with assignments, special events, and students of the week.

Twenty-three seventh grade parents volunteered to respond to surveys about their communication with the staff at the Nashua-Plainfield Middle School and the implementation of the middle school web site.

The response by the parents indicated that they liked the monthly news, information on assignments, and athletic …

The Effects Of A Mother's Incarceration On Her Children, Jane Elizabeth Mayer

Graduate Research Papers

This study examined the effects of a mother's incarceration on her children. Benefits, as well as problems, associated with facilitating a mother-child visitation program were discussed. Guidelines were presented for parents, caregivers, children, and prison staff on a successful mother-child visitation program. Conclusions were drawn from the literature and recommendations were made for the future facilitation of a mother-child visitation program.

Ywca Family Literacy Program, Adam Severson

Graduate Research Papers

According to the federal government (2002), family literacy programs are defined as services provided to participants on a voluntary basis. The programs should be of sufficient energy in terms of hours and duration. Such programs should make lasting changes in a family that include the following activities: (a) interactive literacy activities between parents and children, (b) training for parents regarding how to teach their children and be a partner in education, (c) parent literacy training that leads to economic independence, and (d) an age-appropriate education to prepare children for success in school and life experiences.

The Family Literacy Program at …

Retention In The New Millennium, Pat Davison

Graduate Research Papers

This study examined the effects of retention in regards to children's academic success. The features of retention, research and literature associated with retention, and the benefits and disadvantages were discussed. Guidelines were presented for teachers, along with the appropriate strategies to use in grade level retention. In addition, conclusions were drawn from literature and recommendations for the future facilitation of retention policies.

Parents In Education (Pie), Kathy L. Becker

Graduate Research Papers

"I want to be part of my child's life, all parts of it. I want to help decide things at school, not just be there to help with work that is sent home, but really involved in the school and the decisions about the education my child gets." (D. Schnuelle, personal communication, April 2000) This is the voice of just one parent, but these sentiments and concerns echo many parents. School involvement and making decisions with the administration and faculty is an important part of a parent's responsibility to the school and the children. How do we, as educators, allow …

Music And Software Piracy : Issues And Solutions For Music Teachers And Media Intensive Educators, Chad Criswell

Graduate Research Papers

The rampant piracy of digital materials is not just a problem for the individual home user. In today's world it is increasingly a concern for educators and their school district as a whole. Many recent court actions have been brought against school districts based the illegal use of unlicensed software and other copyrighted materials. This project presents the issues of music and software piracy and the legalities of the United States Copyright Act. It presents common examples for use in the music or media intensive classroom, as well as legal usage requirements including the payment of royalties and purchase of …

Middle School Art And The Internet, John F. Bueltel

Graduate Research Papers

This graduate project focuses on the efforts of one middle school art teacher to integrate the Internet into the middle school art curriculum at one middle school in Iowa. Classrooms with Internet access increased to 63 percent in 2000 (National Center for Education Statistics, 2000) with similar numbers of school age children ( 65 percent) having Internet access in their homes (U.S. Census Bureau, 2001). Art teachers have been reluctant to embrace this technology (Matthews, 1997) even though many art education resources exist on the Internet. The Internet can provide a vast resource of artwork from web sites published by …

The Role Of Invented Spelling In Early Literacy, Nancy Carper

Graduate Research Papers

An awareness and understanding of invented spelling in early literacy were presented in this research paper. The developmental stages and guidelines associated with invented spelling were discussed. Advantages and problems of invented spelling were examined. Conclusions were drawn from the literature review and recommendations were stated for future research concerning invented spelling.

Web Publishing Using Ms Word, Christie Carlsen

Graduate Research Papers

I was approached by a motorcross club and asked to build a Website to represent their club. The purpose of the website is to promote the club to attract new members, announce up-coming events, show a member list with contact numbers, and provide a page to place pictures of past events. The club has limited funds, therefore they intend to maintain their site themselves and asked if I would show a selected few members the process. I had to find a way to educate club members on how to maintain their web page after I created and published the original …

Specific Problem Solution And Distant Learning, David L. Kastler

Graduate Research Papers

This document is an overview of a project to identify the cause of a coolant overheating complaint on a diesel engine that powers a mechanical lift machine, implement a short-term solution and place into action a long-term solution. The short-term correction was to make necessary repairs in the field, long-term solution includes distant training of the mechanical lift machine assembly line and training on the proper assembly procedure of assembling the alternator pulley to the alternator shaft.

The project utilized problem evaluation (Root Cause Analysis), implementing corrective action (short term and long term), and training through distant communication via Internet …

Integrating The Literature And Social Studies Curriculum, Christa S. Lynch

Graduate Research Papers

This paper reviews the historical development of curriculum integration, examining the relationship between literature and social studies and offers an original instructional unit based on this research. The literature will illustrate how, throughout American history, Progressives argued for integration of subjects but under some opposition from their contemporaries. An examination of recent literature will then demonstrate how and why curriculum integration is currently used.

Phonemic Awareness: Its Impact On Beginning Reading, Deb Metcalf

Graduate Research Papers

Phonemic awareness plays a part in the reading acquisition process. Studies have found that language tasks that measure phonemic awareness are significantly related to success in the early stages of reading. This study examined the effects of phonemic awareness in relationship to beginning reading. Guidelines, skill levels, and assessment tools for teachers were presented. Conclusions were drawn from the literature and recommendations were made for future research in this area.

Literacy Volunteers In Elementary Classrooms : Why Do We Need Them And How Do We Train Them?, Laura Meyers

Graduate Research Papers

This project examines the need for specialized literacy volunteers, describes the uses of these volunteers in the elementary school classroom and provides a handbook that could be used to train literacy volunteers to work with students and staff. Surveys were sent to teachers in three elementary school buildings in northeast Iowa to gather input on perceived needs of students in the areas of reading and writing, opinions on specialized training for literacy volunteers and needs and uses of literacy volunteers in the classroom.

After gathering and evaluating data from teacher surveys and consulting current research in the field of reading …

Teaching Nctm Standards Through Subject Areas In The Kindergarten Classroom, Elizabeth Tata O'Neil

Graduate Research Papers

Teachers are being expected to provide a full range of experiences for their students. But in reality, many early childhood programs have reading readiness and literacy as the only focus. In many situations, mathematics instruction is an afterthought. Many students are not given quality instruction because little time in the school day is left, once language arts instruction is completed. This is even more true for students in half-day programs.

One way to alleviate this disparity is to incorporate math instruction within other subject areas. This can be achieved if teachers are educated in the National Council of Teachers of …

Intime Video Field Production And Editing, Jennifer Mohlis Peterson

Graduate Research Papers

The Integrating New Technologies into the Methods of Education (InTime) project is a grant from the U.S. Department of Education. The main function of this grant is to produce and deliver videos, via the Internet, of teachers using technology with their students. The target audience is pre-service and practicing teachers.

In order to capture on tape real teachers in real classrooms with real students, many things need to be considered. Determining what activities and teachers must be included in the project, which elements of the model are to be illustrated, and how to facilitate access to the videos and lesson …

Developing A K-12 District Technology Plan, Greg Reese

Graduate Research Papers

Educational Technologies and technology integration into the curriculum have become hot topics in educational institutions and legislature across the country. Schools are scrambling to buy computers, install networks, buy software, and connect to the Internet. This interest in technology is rooted in various places: pressure from the state legislature and federal government, the business community, and parents in the district who see technology as necessary for their child's success (Lockwood, 1999).

Aggression In The Classroom, Heid Reaman

Graduate Research Papers

This study examined how aggression in the classroom influenced the learning climate. Types of aggression and causal factors were discussed. Guidelines for teachers on the successful management of student aggression were presented. Also, conclusions were drawn from the literature, and recommendations were made to help teachers in the classroom by improving their skills concerning student aggression.

Corporate Universities : What Companies Should Know, Megan Riley

Graduate Research Papers

This paper reviews the research conducted about corporate universities. Our society lives in constant change, in regards to roles, skills, careers, and technology. Continual staff development seems to be requiring technology, as corporate universities are becoming more evident throughout the business world. Corporate universities differ from traditional training programs by providing employees with cutting edge information, in order to keep the company competitive. The research cited in this paper addresses the need to constantly update and transform their training programs, so that employees maintain and enhance their role as a productive and lifelong learner.

Raising Cultural Awareness In The Elementary Classroom Through African-American Children's Literature, Kirsten Seebeck

Graduate Research Papers

This research project topic was selected because of the need for raised cultural awareness in elementary classrooms, as indicated in current research findings. I chose African-American literature because in this region of the United States, Iowa in particular, the classrooms tend to be largely homogenous. Children who are from African-American descent find themselves to be in the minority in their classroom settings.

These children are not seeing many other children like themselves in their school community. It is therefore important that they see themselves in the literature shared within this community, in order to help them to relate to their …

School Readiness: Characteristics, Viewpoints, And Guidelines For Developing An Effective Kindergarten Program, Vicki A. Zweibohmer

Graduate Research Papers

This study examined the recent literature on the subject of school readiness. Positive viewpoints, as well as negative viewpoints, associated with school readiness were discussed. Guidelines were presented for developing an effective kindergarten program with regard to school readiness. Also, conclusions were drawn from the current literature and recommendations were made for future kindergarten programs

The Production Of A School District Video For Promotional Purposes, Rodney R. Zehr

Graduate Research Papers

Video production for educational purposes is becoming more popular in American schools today because of the advancement of technology. With the development of digital cameras, digital video, and various forms of digital-editing software for the computer, American schools can now tap into a new and growing form of media that will continue to grow in popularity as technology continues to advance in the future. 1 The video project for the Mason City Community School District in Mason City, Iowa was initiated as a graduate project through the University of Northern Iowa in Cedar Falls, Iowa. This project was started because …

Motivation And Mandatory Standardized Testing: Utilizing The School Counselor As Consultant, Liaison, Trainer, And Advocate, Trent Taylor

Graduate Research Papers

Since the publication of "A Nation at Risk" in 1983, the emphasis on using standardized testing has dramatically increased (Burke & Lombardi, 1998). Political candidates at all levels are using the issues of accountability and testing in campaign advertisements and as focal points to attack opponents. Today, hundreds of thousands of achievement and aptitude tests are administered each year in educational settings (Hood & Johnson, 1997).

When And How Should Keyboarding Be Taught In The Elementary School?, Shannon Fleming

Graduate Research Papers

This literature review addresses the topic of when and how keyboarding should be taught in the elementary school. It is apparent that keyboarding needs to be taught in the elementary school, but when and how formal keyboarding instruction should be taught is still in question. The review of the literature indicates that there is no concrete answer as to when keyboarding should be taught in elementary school. Most of the research says that instruction should begin one year prior to student use of the computer. As to how to effectively teach keyboarding, it seems that it is a conglomerate of …

Creating A User Friendly Website For The Boys & Girls Clubs Of Black Hawk County, Kimberly M. Carter

Graduate Research Papers

Website design can be overwhelming for many viewers. Many times viewers discontinue using sites, because it.is not easy to navigate through the site. In creating the website for the Boys & Girls Clubs of Black Hawk County, user-friendliness was the focal point of the project. The Chief Professional Officer along with the staff at the Boys & Girls Clubs assisted with the development of a website by providing information that was to be included on the site. To ensure a professional look the designer relied on the four basic principles of design: contrast, repetition, alignment, and proximity. The design simplicity …

Classroom Success Using Online Distance Education : Methods For Maximizing The Effectiveness Of Online Distance Education, Deborah Rae Crane

Graduate Research Papers

This review of literature was conducted to explore classroom success using online distance education and proven methods of maximizing the effectiveness of online distance education.

The components of successful online distance education programs are reviewed and brought together in a paper that suggests that online education developed with careful planning will continue to grow and become a standard component of many programs. The challenges that online instruction faces as it continues to develop are also included.

The future of online education is dependent on the quality that is built into courses. Technologies continue to evolve and present opportunities and challenges …

Developing A Quality Parent Program For Dunkerton Preschool, Jolene Denner

Graduate Research Papers

This study addressed the topic of developing a quality parent program for the Dunkerton (Iowa) Preschool. A literature research study focused on benefits of a parent program and the problems associated with implementing parent education, involvement, and support. Guidelines and resources for planning and developing a successful program were outlined. Conclusions were drawn from the literature and recommendations were made for pertinent guidelines for the Dunkerton Preschool.

Evaluating The Effectiveness Of Team-Teaching Involving General And Special Education Teachers In Early Childhood Programs, Lesley Janelle Ehlers

Graduate Research Papers

This paper examined the effects of team teaching in early childhood programs. Variations of team teaching were described. Benefits, as well as problems, associated with team teaching were also discussed. Guidelines were presented for educators concerning the successful implementation of team teaching. Conclusions were drawn from the literature and recommendations were made for educators interested in team teaching.

Developing Literacy Through Storybook Reading Events, Linda Eitmann

Graduate Research Papers

This study examined the effects of storybook reading on children's emergent literacy. Benefits and challenges were discussed which were associated with facilitating literacy through teacher-read storybook events. Also guidelines were presented for teachers to use storybooks as an emergent developmental and instructional method. Conclusions were drawn from the literature and recommendations were made for the future facilitation of storybook reading events.

The Constructivist-Based Approach : The Better Choice For Learning, Consuella Eugene

Graduate Research Papers

With the integration of technology in the classroom, the constructivist-based approach encourages students to utilize their minds in a scholastic and a creative manner. Students are encouraged to learn via creativity, experience, experimentation, and teamwork. Teachers are able to organize information around conceptual clusters of problems and questions as opposed to learning facts in isolation. This approach is based upon the idea that students construct their own knowledge, rather than reproducing someone else's knowledge.

The advantages of the constructivist-based approach will be clearly noted and described by this researcher exploring the learning environments for students, students learning, student involvement, evaluation …