Curriculum and Instruction Commons^™

Genius Culture: How We Influence Student Identity In Stem, Larry L. Bowman Jr.

ETSU Faculty Works

In Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) fields, identity and belonging are affected by how students view themselves as belonging in STEM or not. The movement to help students understand that anyone can be successful in STEM is an incredibly important one. However, how students construct their identities within STEM is important for maintaining their engagement within STEM fields over time. If we condition students to expect positive feedback for having an aptitude in a STEM field early-on, what I deem genius culture, we risk helping these students develop resilience when faced with challenges. Although, if we tell students …

Obligations, Obstacles, And Opportunities: Conducting Research As A Laboratory School Teacher, Amanda Frasier, Heidi Campbell, Lisa Reis, Holley Ziglar

ETSU Faculty Works

Excerpt: "Scholars have documented that when John Dewey formed an experimental university-based school in Chicago in 1896, he intended that research be a component of laboratory schools (Camp-Mayhew et al., 1936; Durst, 2010). However, the realities of teaching and the bureaucratic structures of higher education present obstacles to engaging in meaningful empirical work. Additionally, the majority of laboratory schools have converted from their original form as public, university-based institutions of innovative teaching and research to private, tuition-based institutions or to public facilities attended primarily by the children of university faculty (Whitman, 2020). However, there are examples of laboratory schools that …

What Makes Classroom Observation Feedback Useful? The Perceptions Of Secondary Math And English Teachers, Amanda Frasier

ETSU Faculty Works

Teachers (n=14) at four high schools in North Carolina were interviewed about their perspectives of evaluation policy at two time points during the 2016-2017 school year. This study specifically examined statements teachers made about feedback from observations using de-identified interview transcripts. Teachers discussed feedback from formal observations along with other sources of informal observational feedback (e.g., coaches, peers). Overall, teachers described useful feedback as that which provided actionable recommendations informed by the observer’s knowledge of three domains: the classroom context (as aided by the frequency and timing of observations), subject area, and pedagogy. Teachers also identified two aspects of formal …

High Quality, Equity, And Assessment: An Analysis Of Variables Impacting English Learner Standardized Science Test Performance And Implications For Construct Validity, Maria Del Carmen Salazar, Joanna K. Bruno, Melissa P. Schneider

Curriculum and Instruction: Faculty Scholarship

In the United States, assessment is seen as a lever that can facilitate high-quality education. This study on English learners, students whose native language is not English, was based on data from eighth-grade English learners’ performance on science general and content-specific (physical, life, and earth science) standardized exams and an English language proficiency exam. The researchers utilized regression analysis to examine factors (i.e., socioeconomic status, home language, English language proficiency, and receptive and productive elements of language) that are predictive of English learner performance in general and content-specific science standardized assessments to identify implications for construct validity of high-stakes science …

A Culturally Sustaining Book Club: The Examination Of African American Students' Motivation And Literacy Achievement, Brittney C. Jones

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Culturally sustaining pedagogy includes centering students’ cultural identities, languages, and practices in the classroom. Such practices have had positive effects on the reading achievement and motivation of African American students. In particular, communalism and interdependence are cultural themes that are preferred by African American students and parents. Book clubs are a long-standing literacy activity that centers student voices and social interactions as the basis of student learning.

This mixed-methods intervention study was conducted to determine the effects of a culturally sustaining book club on second and third-grade African American students’ motivation and reading achievement at a Title I school as …

Understanding L2 Learners' Writing Needs And Attitudes In Eap Writing Contexts, Renata Pavanelli Pereira

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to conduct a needs analysis in order to identify the real-world writing tasks that diverse English for Academic Purposes (EAP) learners are required to perform in academic contexts. The study initially uncovered the culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds of EAP learners across three Southeastern state colleges. The study then identified the writing tasks that were being completed in an advanced EAP composition course. Furthermore, the study explored the writing needs of EAP learners with a focus on the participants’ experiences and attitudes about the writing tasks they performed in the composition course. Finally, an …

An Examination Of Cuban-American Social Studies Teachers' Cultural Consciousness Relative To Their Identity, Educational Beliefs, And Curricular Decisions: A Critical Latino Theoretical Perspective, Victor Barrios

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this research was to examine how five self-identified Cuban-American social studies teachers, in a city where they are viewed as the dominant culture, demonstrated ethnic and cultural identity, expressed educational beliefs on teaching and learning, promoted culturally diverse pedagogy, and approached the official curriculum relative to their cultural consciousness. This study used a qualitative research design with multiple case and cross-case analysis. Critical Latino theory was the theoretical framework employed for social and cultural categories pertinent to Latinx groups. The study found that the teacher-participants in this study reflected a dominant cultural ideology in Miami which influenced …

How Are Social Studies Teachers Using Technology In The Classroom?, Stephanie Delgado

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

So that students are equipped with the skills needed to compete a in a global economy, schools are being given resources intended to increase equity, opportunity, and to close the digital divide. Digital equitability exists when all students have access to both advanced technologies and the learning opportunities the technologies provide (Solomon, Allen, & Resta, 2003). The U.S. Department of Education notes that although students are graduating high school at high rates, performance gaps among students from low socioeconomic and various cultural backgrounds still exist. My study followed a constructivist grounded theory approach to examine how seven teachers in Miami-Dade …

The Relationship Between Aerobic Fitness, Gross And Fine Motor Skills, And Academic Achievement Among First Grade Students In Urban Schools And The Role The Relative Age Effect May Have On These Variables, Alberto Pelaez

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This non-experimental design, cross-sectional and retrospective study (N=79) examined the relationship among aerobic fitness, gross motor skills, fine motor skills and academic achievement; aerobic fitness and reaction time; relative age effect and aerobic fitness, gross motor skills, and academic achievement. The Bruininks-Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency (BOT-2), Yo-Yo Aerobic Test, Diery Liewald Reaction Time Task, and Stanford Achievement Test 10 were administered to heterogeneous, non-randomized, first grade students. Hypotheses were examined using correlational analysis and independent T-test analysis.

The results indicated that aerobic fitness and academic achievement were not correlated with mathematics scores, not reading scores. Regarding gross motor skills …

Reflection On And For Actions: Probing Into English Language Art Teachers' Personal And Professional Experiences With English Language Learners, Huili Hong, Karin Keith, Renee Rice Moran

ETSU Faculty Works

Effective ELL teaching and learning is profoundly influenced by the teachers' personal experiences and personalities (Farrell, 2016), their experience as language learners as well as language teachers (Farrell, 2007), and their beliefs about learning and teaching a second language (Farrell, 2015; Farrell & Ives, 2015). This study honored and examined in-depth the often-discounted stories/reflective narratives of our teachers. This paper reports a qualitative cases study that explores three veteran teachers' reflection on their personal and professional experiences with ELLs for self-discovery over years (Cirocki & Farrell, 2017) so that they can further reflect for their future actions with ELLs (Burns …

Task-Based Language Teaching Versus Present, Practice, Produce: Efficacy In Language Learning And Assessment, Majeed Noroozi

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Long (2015) defines Task-based Language Teaching (TBLT) as “an approach to course design, implementation, and evaluation intended to meet the communicative needs of diverse groups of learners” (p. 5). Task-based Language Teaching has been introduced and developed by second language acquisition researchers as well as language educators in response to the teacher dominated and focus-on-formS methods of language teaching in classrooms such as the approach of Present, Practice, Produce (PPP) (Van den Branden, 2006). The present study aimed to build upon the previous literature on the possible differential effects of the PPP approach and TBLT on students’ language learning (e.g., …

Linguistic Imperialism In Jordan: The Impact Of English Education Curriculum On Cultural Behaviors Of Secondary Students In Amman, Haley Chatwin

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This study explores the questions of how culturally inclusive curriculum effects the cultural behaviors of secondary students in Amman, Jordan, and how culturally inclusive curriculum effects the attitudes that these students have towards the English language itself. The researcher hypothesized that culturally inclusive curriculum mitigated the dilution of students cultural identities, and effected the students attitudes towards the English language. This study is significant, as English is taught at every school in Jordan, and Jordan has a long history of occupation by an English-speaking country. The researcher conducted the study using the data collection tools of semi-structured interviews, participant observation, …

Using Imagination To Bridge Young Children’S Literacy And Science Learning: A Dialogic Approach, Huili Hong, Karin Keith, Renee Rice Moran

ETSU Faculty Works

Integrating children’s literacy and science learning has become a new focus in literacy instruction. Imagination, an integral part of children’s learning experience, remains marginalized in today’s early childhood education curriculum. Drawing on a yearlong ethnographic study in a first-grade classroom, this paper explores the potential affordance of imagination in integrating young children’s literacy and science learning. The findings showed that the integration opportunities were organically constructed in and through children’s natural engagement of imagination in their reading process. A dialogic approach is presented as one way to ignite children’s imaginations in their literacy and science learning.

Sound And Waves: An Integrated K–8 Hands‐On Approach Supporting The Ngss And Ccss Ela, Chih-Che Tai, Karin Keith, Laura Robertson, Renee Rice Moran

ETSU Faculty Works

Receive practical ideas to build understanding about how to combine reading and hands-on activities as tools to understand the nature of wave movement.

Abc Or Aei: A Comparison Of Approaches To Early Childhood Education In Samoa, Sofia Valbuena

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Due to discussion about the importance of early childhood education (ECE), the scene in Samoa has shifted. The present study compares and analyzes approaches to ECE in Samoa from three schools: Brilliant Star Montessori Preschool, Divine Mercy Preschool, and Saoluafata Preschool. Data was collected through participatory observation over the course of two and three days at each school. Results showed both similarities and differences within the preschools in themes such as play, academic curriculum, and classroom management. Analysis found ECE in Samoa is developing and potential tools to further improve the schools were presented. This study will provide a report …

Word Recognition Competency Activity For Students, Lashay Jennings, Renee Rice Moran, Karla Knupp, Edward J. Dwyer, Huili Hong

ETSU Faculty Works

No abstract provided.

Improving Visual Memory: A Terrific Teaching Tip, Renee Rice Moran, Huili Hong, Lashay Jennings, Kayla Knupp, Edward J. Dwyer

ETSU Faculty Works

No abstract provided.

Journal Rankings And Representation In Mathematics Education, Samuel Otten, Ryan Andrew Nivens

ETSU Faculty Works

Excerpt: Publish or perish has long been the mantra academics live by. For decades, this referred to a list of publications on a researcher’s Curriculum Vitae.

Sex-Positive Curricula: An Investigation Of The Relationship Between Physical Fitness, Self-Concept And Sexual Functioning, Lia Jiannine

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Despite the well-recognized benefits of exercise, Americans are gaining weight in astounding proportions and levels of physical activity are on the decline. The purpose of this study was to investigate a relationship between physical fitness, self-concept and sexual health. There is a dearth of knowledge on this relationship specifically in the context of sex-negative curricula, which is the dominate discourse in the United States.

One hundred and thirty-three participants between the ages of 18 - 50 volunteered for fitness testing and data collection. Physical fitness was assessed through body fat, resting metabolic rate, cardiovascular endurance, muscular strength, muscular endurance and …

Doc 9 Research Forum Abstracts, Chris Diaz

Doctoral Research Forums

In this research conference, members of the 2015 ACE Doctoral Cohort (Doc-9) will present their research for public review and discussion.

These presentations are a formal component of the Critical Engagement Project—a sustained and critical inquiry.

Through their Critical Engagement Project, doctoral students infuse their dissertation with a critical sense of self, their commitments, and their vision of both self and the world they seek to build through their inquiries.

Test-Retest Reliability Of Curriculum-Based Measurement Written Expression Probes, Mallory Hart

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Despite the growing popularity and utilization of Curriculum-Based Measurement for assessing students’ academic skills and for progress monitoring, little attention has been devoted to the area of written expression. Very few studies have been conducted to assess test-retest reliability. Only three previous studies were identified that examined the test-retest reliability of written expression curriculum-based measures. To address this issue, the current study examined the test-retest reliability of five common scoring procedures with students in grades 2, 4, and 6. A one-week time interval was used. Results indicated that while test-retest correlations were statistically significant and often at a moderate to …

Teaching Undergraduates How To Analyze, Ryan Andrew Nivens, Rosalind Raymond Gann

ETSU Faculty Works

Analysis is typically listed in taxonomies of higher order thinking. Academics consider these taxonomies worthwhile, but they are hard to teach and we are apt to ignore them. Today higher education is criticized for “dumbing down” curriculum or lowering standards. To rectify this, many policies at the state or national level are requiring higher education institutions to change. In K-12 education, Race to the Top and Common Core requirements are placing new demands on K-12 teacher preparation, which include evaluation of the analysis skills of pre-service teachers. But professors do not always view their disciplines as the proper place for …

Full-Year Sabbatical Award 2014-2015: Furthering Liberal Arts In Indonesian Higher Education, Judith Puncochar

Awards

A rigorous study of the liberal arts with student-centered andragogy is absent in Indonesian higher education. A strong participatory democracy, such as the Indonesian democracy, may require skills engendered by the study of liberal arts and associated opportunities for students to practice skills for dialogue, constructive debate, and potential problem analysis. My sabbatical application postulates that the study of liberal arts in Indonesia will lead to higher levels of critical thinking in college students, higher quality of teachers in local schools, and better citizenship in Indonesia and the world. The Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia (UPI) invited me to work as a …

We The People: Elementary Pre-Service Teachers And Constitutional Readability, Lori T. Meier, Karin Keith, Edward J. Dwyer

ETSU Faculty Works

In light of increasing mandates to incorporate close reading of primary source historical documents at the elementary level, this study explored the reading difficulty level of the US Constitution with preservice elementary teachers using a traditional cloze assessment procedure. While best practice pedagogy of social studies has long included thoughtful reading of primary sources, new language arts guidelines situate the analysis of primary documents within formulaic quantifiable frameworks, often problematic to the pre-service teacher. With implications for reading and social studies, this paper explores several relevant issues to both pre-service teachers and the elementary classrooms they will teach in.

Ready2teach: Shifts In Teacher Preparation Through Residency And Situated Learning, Ryan Andrew Nivens

ETSU Faculty Works

Residency models for education in the medical profession have existed for many years. Nationwide, policies are being implemented to bring this model to the field of teacher preparation. How this plays out within education programs is less researched, and there is a need to document the transition from traditional teacher education, that is, education that is based heavily in the college classroom, to a residency model, where preservice teachers spend a significant amount of time in an elementary school classroom. This paper describes how a year-long residency model is implemented and presents the changes in curriculum, scheduling and challenges encountered.

Teaching Undergraduates How To Analyze, Ryan Andrew Nivens, Rosalind Raymond Gann

ETSU Faculty Works

Analysis is typically the first of the higher functions listed in taxonomies of higher order thinking. Academics consider these upper categories extremely worthwhile, but they are hard to teach and we are apt to ignore them. Today higher education is being criticized for “dumbing down” curriculum or lowering standards. To rectify this, many policies at the state or national level are requiring higher education institutions to change. In K‐12 education, Race to the Top and Common Core requirements are placing new demands on K‐12 teacher preparation, which include evaluation of the analysis skills of pre‐service teachers. But professors do not …

An Investigation Of Palindromes And Their Place In Mathematics, Ryan Andrew Nivens

ETSU Faculty Works

What do the Honda Civic, the Mazda 626, and the Boeing 747 have in common? What about Weird Al's song Bob, the first name of Miley Cyrus' alter ego, and the 70s sensation Abba? What do all these things have in common? They all contain palindromes. While some people recognise a palindrome when they see one, fewer realise that a palindrome is a special case of a pattern and that these patterns are all around. Palindromes frequently occur in names, both of vehicles and people, and in music.

An Analysis Of The Factors That Influence Global Mindedness In First-Year College Students, Kristie Broadbent Guffey

Dissertations

This non-experimental, quantitative descriptive study was designed to determine what factors influence a first-year college students’ global mindedness and if any of those factors were predictors of the five subscales of global mindedness. Surveys were used to measure students’ global mindedness and their type of personality (N=424). Demographic questions were administered that included gender, county population, Pell grant eligibility, and first generation college student. Results indicated that first-year college students at a four-year public Master’s Large institution were moderately global minded. To predict global mindedness and its subscales, a regression model was developed using the Myers Briggs scores for extravert, …

The Eastman Scholar Mathletes: A Collaborative Partnership, Ryan Andrew Nivens, Jack Rhoton, George Poole, Hugh Imboden

ETSU Faculty Works

Excerpt: Professional development has been of central importance throughout the mathematics education reforms in our educational history. Recognizing that math teachers represent the major link between the curriculum and student learning, expert practitioners, researchers, and policy makers emphasize professional development as an essential mechanism for deepening teachers’ content knowledge and developing their teaching practices.

Producing Memorable Cloth-Bound Books In The Classroom, Karin J. Keith, A. Horton, A. Roach, J. Temaj, Edward J. Dwyer

ETSU Faculty Works

No abstract provided.