Curriculum and Instruction Commons^™

Facebook Avatars, Or Doppelgangers, For The Academician: Ementoring Turned Educational Campaign, Jennifer Tang, Sarah Brennan

Touchstone

Facebook, an innovative digital communication tool, boasts more than 500 million active users worldwide. Faculty nationwide can testify to the popularity of this social networking site. Ask a group of students in any classroom if they have used Facebook the night before, and teachers observe that most, if not all, hands would go up (Bugeja). Contrast this with the response of students if a professor inquired, “Who completed the reading or assignment I gave last night?” The results would most likely be different, regardless of the level of excellence the faculty member brings to the classroom.

Immigration Through A Child's Eyes: A Study Of Italian And Eastern European Russian Immigrants At The Turn Of The 20th Century, Rachel Gelles, Ellie Klausner

Graduate Student Independent Studies

The activity guide, Turn of the 20th Century Immigrant Experience, which is designed for a social studies immigration unit, uses an interdisciplinary approach to teach students about immigrating to a new country. It connects to the lives and interests of our students as almost everyone originally immigrated to America from somewhere. In essence, some students immigrated themselves, while others have parents or grandparents who immigrated to the United States. This activity guide is also specifically designed to teach fourth grade students about immigration at the turn of the 20th century. The New York State Standards for fourth grade require that …

Gifted Students: What Motivates Them, Sharon Reitsma Zonnefeld

Master of Education Program Theses

This paper explores the implications of a Biblical worldview on gifted students' motivation and uses this Biblical worldview as a framework to evaluate classroom constructs, such as high level questions, promotion of learning as hard work, cooperative learning, Theory of Multiple Intelligences, RtI (Response to Intervention), and student choice, that are known to influence gifted students' motivation. Teacher personalities and tendencies, as well as students' family relationships, early learning and stimulation, personal characteristics, and emotional state are also discussed in relation to gifted students' motivation and achievement. A review of the relevant literature was conducted to ascertain the relationship of …

Dr. Connie's Inner Leader Coaching Ecosystem, Connie I. Reimers-Hild

Kimmel Education and Research Center: Faculty and Staff Publications

Dr. Connie’s Inner Leader Coaching Ecosystem recognizes that life is a journey

with its ups and downs, joys and sorrows, positive and negative changes.

It is designed to blend the spiritual with the physical and material. Most importantly,

it is an ecosystem that recognizes the importance of living fully while making

desired changes and adjustments. A central focus of Dr. Connie’s Inner Leader

Coaching Ecosystem is to help clients live more fully while on their journey to

develop their inner leader and move towards their personal vision. It is not a

coaching process focused on solely reaching goals and achieving …

Change In Cultural Competency Among Students During An Intentional Human Relations Experience, Camille Mcnabb, Samantha Tupy

Education Presentations at National and International Conferences

This study measured changes in the intercultural competency of undergraduate students in a course, Human Relations in a Multicultural Society. The National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) is encouraging teacher preparation programs to foster and measure culturally responsive teaching (2010). The hypothesis for this study was that the intentional, cross-cultural experiences of students will have an impact on the cultural competency of each student. This course is taught each semester at a Midwestern public university. The study included 70 undergraduate students between 18 and 35 years old who voluntarily enrolled in the course and represented students in academic …

The Impact Of The Peace Curriculum: One School's Story, Eloise Hockett, John Muhanji

Faculty Publications - College of Education

No abstract provided.

Resistance Meets Spirituality In Academia: "I Prayed On It!", Vonzell Agosto, Zorka Karanxha

Educational Leadership and Policy Studies Faculty Publications

We describe the lived experiences of a Black Woman educational leader who has studied and worked in the academy and in the field of K-12 education. This partial life history, excavated through the tenets of Critical Race Theory (CRT), illuminates the social construction of race and the pervasiveness and permanence of racism. We determined through a series of interviews that the participant's resilient resistance is guided by critical spirituality so that circumstances and people who challenge her also confront this source of power. Her lived experience, from student to faculty member, conveys the challenges and opportunities she faces and adds …

Graduate School Learning Curves: Mcnair Scholars' Postbaccalaureate Transitions, Scott Willison, Emily Gibson

Curriculum, Instruction, and Foundational Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

The federally funded Ronald B. McNair Postbaccalaureate Achievement Program (McNair Program) prepares first-generation, low-income, and underrepresented college undergraduates to pursue terminal graduate degrees. This study examines 22 McNair scholars’ transitions into graduate school in an attempt to identify factors that influence alumni persistence and matriculation. The participants in this study were alumni from a mid-sized, Northwestern university's McNair Program. During interviews, participants identified significant "learning curves" experienced in graduate school. Five themes, representing 14 learning curves, emerged: academic readiness, weaving a supportive web, managing the clock, being accepted, and staying financially fit. Researchers incorporated identified learning curves into an on-line …

Under The Influence: First-Year Seminars And The Librarian Teaching Role, Steven Hoover, Randy Hensley

Library Faculty Presentations

The discussion will address the benefits and challenges of teaching as a librarian outside of the library.

How can a librarian's experiences prepare them to teach a semester-long course?

What factors influence the design and delivery of a first-year seminar?

What challenges might arise when teaching outside of the library?

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 …

Literacy And Lenses: Can The New Michigan Merit Curriculum Support The Mission Of Covenant Christian High School‘S English Department?, Suzanne R. Looyenga

Master of Education Program Theses

The need for curriculum restructuring as a solution for addressing the changing needs in Michigan‘s public schools has led to the creation and implementation of a new Michigan Merit Curriculum (MMC) based on the latest educational research into the needs of 21st century students. Covenant Christian High School in Grand Rapids, Michigan, is a private, parental school that is evaluating and revising its curriculum in anticipation of adding the ninth grade to the school next year. The question has been raised in the English department whether the MMC could be used to support the Reformed, biblical mission of the school, …

An Exploration Of A First Year Experience Course To Meet The Needs Of Veteran And Other Non-Traditional College Students, Amy C. Wise

Dissertations, Theses and Capstone Projects (Full IR Collection)

Over the last several years, the number of veterans returning to college campuses has steadily increased. Many veterans are taking advantage of education benefits offered by the Department of Veterans Affairs, and have been out of school for a number of years. A number of veterans are considered nontraditional students, and the responsibilities of being a parent, an employee, a husband or wife, and college student can be overwhelming. In recent years, the economic recession has also added financial hardships to the already full agenda of many of these students. Throughout the nation, colleges have created programs that will assist …

Collaborative Strategic Board Games As A Site For Distributed Computational Thinking, Matthew Berland, Victor R. Lee

Instructional Technology and Learning Sciences Faculty Publications

This paper examines the idea that contemporary strategic board games represent an informal, interactional context in which complex computational thinking takes place. When games are collaborative – that is, a game requires that players work in joint pursuit of a shared goal – the computational thinking is easily observed as distributed across several participants. This raises the possibility that a focus on such board games are profitable for those who wish to understand computational thinking and learning in situ. This paper introduces a coding scheme, applies it to the recorded discourse of three groups of game players, and provides qualitative …

Integrating Robotics Into First-Year Experience Courses, Tyson S. Hall, P. Willard Munger

Faculty Works

Robotics are a popular component of many introductory engineering and computer science courses. At Southern Adventist University, the School of Computing faculty decided to integrate robotics into a discipline-specific section of the University’s first-year experience course. The integration of robotics into a first-year experience course has created a hands-on introduction to college life within the Computing discipline while introducing students to the problem-solving process. This paper will introduce a very low-cost robotic platform kit ($50-75) that has been developed for the first-year experience course. Student assessment data from the first offering of this course with the SouthernBot 2.0 kit shows …

Unlv Magazine, Cate Weeks, Afsha Bawany, Gregean Wingert, Shane Bevell, David Wrobel, Tony Allen

UNLV Magazine

No abstract provided.

2011 Ijbe Front Matter, Tamra Connor

International Journal for Business Education

1. Editorial Board
2. President's Letter
3. SIEC-ISBE International

Of Fairs And Festivals: Librarians Teach Thematic First-Year Seminars, Donna Braquet, Micheline Westfall

The Southeastern Librarian

For almost a century, library skills instruction by academic librarians has been a vital component of university programs created to help first-year students adapt to the social and academic environment of college life (Walter, 2004). Asretention of first-year students has become a strategic goal for universities, a variety of firstyear experience (FYE) programs have been developed over the last decade to address this goal. For many academic librarians, the FYE programs have resulted in an increased collaboration with faculty (Walter, 2004). This collaboration ranges from assisting faculty with incorporating information literacy skills within classroom instruction to embedding librarians within classes …

Evaluation Of A Merged Secondary And Special Education Program, Ann Fullerton Dr., Barbara Ruben, Stephanie Mcbride, Susan Bert

Curriculum and Instruction Faculty Publications and Presentations

If classroom teachers are among the greatest determinant of student learning, then teacher preparation programs have a role to play improving educational outcomes for struggling learners. There are currently three established teacher preparation program models: (1) "discrete"; (2) "integrated"; and (3) "merged." In the "discrete" model, which is the most widely implemented of the three, general and special education programs are separate. In the "integrated" model, separate programs are retained but faculty work together to develop some courses and/or field experiences in which special education candidates learn about the general education curriculum while general education candidates learn about inclusive education. …

Technoromanticism: Creating Digital Editions In An Undergraduate Classroom, Katherine D. Harris

Faculty Publications, English and Comparative Literature

No abstract provided.

Get A Life Project: Dynamic Career And Entrepreneurship Counselling For University Students, Tarja Römer-Paakkanen, Pirjo Takanen-Körperich, Ph.D.

International Journal for Business Education

This paper is based on an ongoing project that aims to promote future-oriented thinking and pro-activity among university students. The students, as well as the career counsellors in universities, need tools for career planning in order to anticipate and assess the future direction of their work life and their role in society. This project provides a future-oriented simulation tool for students as well as guidance tools for counselling personnel. The scientific outcome of our studies and the project will be a pedagogical model, whilst the practical outcome will be a virtual handbook for career counsellors. The project also predicts some …

The Interface Of Technology In Culinary Arts Education, Robert C. Cawley

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Introduction:

A culinary educator must make many decisions that affect the day-to-day activities in both the classroom and the lab. One of the more important decisions is how to select the most appropriate technology to implement for use in teaching and administrative activities. The research presented here is intended to help the educator identify specific needs, decide where the use of technology is desirable, and offer information designed to help the educator make an informed decision about using technology as a teaching tool.

Purpose Statement:

The purpose of this paper is to inform the culinary educator about the technology available …

Who Calls The Shots In Dining Customer Service, Kendi Root

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Introduction:

Americans have become impatient with poor dining service standards. Some believe a depressed economy, lack of skilled labor, and even bad customers have contributed to a new epidemic (Kim & Chen, 2010). Bottom line, most paying customers probably prefer a pleasant service staff to an unpleasant one. Service staff with pleasant personalities and positive attitudes impact the customer experience and overall satisfaction (Ryan & Ployhart, 2003; Barrash, & Costen, 2008). Grandey in 2003 coined this “QSD” or quality service delivery.

Case Synopsis:

The case study depicts a critical service incident with a dining service encounter in an upscale, full …

Meeting Minutes, Wku Graduate Council

Graduate School

Meeting minutes.

March Agenda, Wku Graduate Council

Graduate School

Meeting agenda.

Characteristics Of Problems For Problem-Based Learning: The Students’ Perspective, Nachamma Sockalingam, Henk G. Schmidt

Interdisciplinary Journal of Problem-Based Learning

This study aimed to identify salient problem characteristics perceived by students in problem-based curricula. To this end, reflective essays from biomedical students (N = 34) on characteristics of good problems were text analyzed. Students identified eleven characteristics, of which they found the extent to which the problem leads to desired learning outcomes as the most important characteristic. The extent to which the problem stimulates elaboration and the extent to which the problem promotes team effort were considered to be the least important problem characteristics. We clustered the eleven characteristics into two categories, “features” or “functions,” based on the perceived roles …

Core Areas Of Twenty-First Century Knowledge, Leap

UNLV Libraries-Greater Western Library Alliance Conference

Beginning in school, and continuing at successively higher levels across their college studies, students should prepare for twenty-first century challenges by gaining:

Knowledge of Human Cultures and the Physical and Natural World

Through study in the sciences and mathematics, social sciences, humanities, histories, languages, and the arts

Focused by engagement with big questions, both contemporary and enduring

The Degree Qualifications Profile, Lumina Foundation

UNLV Libraries-Greater Western Library Alliance Conference

The need for a Degree Profile

Higher learning has taken on new importance in today’s knowledge society. To succeed in the contemporary workplace, today’s students must prepare for jobs that are rapidly changing, use technologies that are still emerging and work with colleagues from (and often in) all parts of the globe. The challenges that graduates face as citizens during their lives are similarly complex and also are affected by developments around the world.

Recognizing the economic and societal importance of higher levels of learning, national leaders, policymakers, analysts and major philanthropies have called for a dramatic increase in the …

The Quality Imperative: Match Ambitious Goals For College Attainment With An Ambitious Vision For Learning, Board Of Directors Of The Association Of American Colleges And Universities

UNLV Libraries-Greater Western Library Alliance Conference

Facing an avalanche of evidence that the United States no longer leads the world in postsecondary attainment, educational leaders at all levels have begun a far-reaching effort to increase significantly the number of students entering and completing higher education. This is a top priority for the Obama administration, for policy leaders and philanthropy, and for colleges and universities.

The Association of American Colleges and Universities welcomes and strongly supports the emerging national commitment to expand appreciably both access to college and successful completion. We are especially concerned that higher education provide equitable access and expanded opportunity for groups and communities …

Universal Undergraduate Learning Outcomes (Uulo) Recommendations, University Of Nevada, Las Vegas

UNLV Libraries-Greater Western Library Alliance Conference

Outcomes (What we want students to achieve) and Objectives (How we will know students achieve the goals)

The undergraduate learning outcomes articulate clear expectations for what all UNLV students should know and be able to do upon graduation. The undergraduate learning outcomes form the foundation for general education but also extend into the majors. This comprehensive approach aims to meld undergraduate learning into a more intentional, coherent experience that consists of the purposeful sequencing of learning from the first year, to the middle years, to the senior year and includes learning both within and outside the major, including co-curricular expenences.

Faculty Institute On Research Based-Learning In High Impact Courses, University Of Nevada, Las Vegas

UNLV Libraries-Greater Western Library Alliance Conference

In Spring 2009, the Library Advisory Board agreed to fund a proposal for the Libraries to collaborate with campus partners to provide support to faculty who were faced with several initiatives that impact the way faculty deliver their course content, develop their assignments and assess their success. These initiatives include the movement to large enrollment classes, especially for large impact, core courses; the redesign of the general education requirements around universal learning outcomes; and, enhancing the first-year experience for incoming students. There is no single entity on campus in a position to provide the faculty support and development needed.

The …