Early Childhood Education Commons^™

Fostering Children’S Academic Development Through Movement-Based Learning Environments, Hannah Martin

Graduate Teacher Education

Abstract

This study investigated how play and movement affect young children’s learning in order to provide educators with teaching strategies that are effective and developmentally appropriate in supporting the whole child. Academics, standardized testing, and school readiness have been buzzwords in education since No Child Left Behind was enacted in 2001. The term “school readiness” has been interpreted to indicate worksheets, memorization, and direct instruction to increase academic scores on standardized tests (Klein, 2015). The Common Core Standards for reading have dramatically increased in recent decades, including the expectation that children leaving kindergarten be comprehensive emergent readers (Carlsson-Paige, Bywater-McLaughlin, & …

A Phenomenological Investigation Of Early Childhood Education Preparation And Experiences Of California Certificated Elementary School Educators Assigned To Transitional Kindergarten, Elizabeth A. Golchert

CUP Ed.D. Dissertations

This dissertation represents original, independent research that is a contribution of new knowledge to the field of educational practice. As a new phenomenon in the California public school system, transitional kindergarten (TK) is now bringing about a closer look by researchers at legislative practices, TK program implementation, local school district policies, teacher preparation, and teacher implementation of best practices related to the education of children of approximately four years of age. The purpose of conducting this study was to broadly examine these topics, but more specifically, investigate the problem of children being assigned to teachers who do not have the …

Parent And Teacher Perceptions About What Leads To Mastery In Reading At Classical Charter Schools In Texas, Brittany Kretz

CUP Ed.D. Dissertations

Throughout the United States and in the State of Texas there are high percentages of students who are not reading at grade level. This study looked at the activities done at home by families of students who scored above grade level on the Third Grade Reading STAAR from classical charter schools. In this quantitative study, a survey was given to the parents of fourth-grade students and the teachers of elementary students. The families used in the study were from classical charter schools located in Texas. The literature review discusses the curriculum used in classical schools and how reading is taught. …

Teacher Perceptions Of The Digital Badge In Kindergarten Reading Attainment, Amy Cooper

CUP Ed.D. Dissertations

Educators are consistently seeking appropriate measures of assessment and guidance tools in the 21st century. Tools in classrooms today are lacking the needs relevant to digital natives. Digital badges are a form of assessment, achievement, and accomplishment that show competencies and growth. This phenomenological research study was conducted to examine the experiences of seven teachers and three principals in a suburban school in a Northeastern state regarding the implementation of the digital badge in early literacy. The analysis of the data showed digital badges as intrinsically engaging, preferred over report cards, with a strong impact on instruction and relationships, validating, …

An Action Research Investigation Into An Early Childhood Digital, Storytelling-Based Solution, Jessica Smith

CUP Ed.D. Dissertations

The development of literacy skills prior to the classroom has been established as essential for future school and life successes. However, the present achievement gap between lower-socioeconomic neighborhoods and their higher-income counterparts illustrate vast dissimilarities in early childhood provisions for quality reading materials and instructional aides. In an effort to bridge the educational breach, a collaborative, storytelling-based program entitled Kid Forward was introduced to five nationwide families as a means of assistance for early childhood literacy development. Through the use of demographic surveys, interviews completed before and after the program implementation, and exit surveys, the action research study examined early …

A Qualitative Case Study Of Teachers’ Perceptions And Practices In Social Justice Education And The Perceived Implications For K‒2nd Grade Children, Tina M. Lageson

CUP Ed.D. Dissertations

This qualitative case study explored the perceptions and practices of three teachers who teach social justice concepts in kindergarten and 2nd-grade classrooms in an urban school district in the Northwest region of the United States. The research sought to answer the following central questions: (a) What do teachers perceive about how instruction on social justice concepts impact early grade learners in classroom settings? (b) What do teachers perceive about how this instruction influences learner perceptions regarding their role in society? Through a three-phase data collection approach that included teacher and parent interviews, teacher observations with observation debrief, and student artifact …

A Study Of The Effects Of Metacognitive Instruction On Reading Comprehension In The Primary Classroom, Sara Wing

CUP Ed.D. Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine if a relationship existed between metacognitive instruction and students’ growth rate for fluency, accuracy, self-correction rates, and comprehension in reading. The research question that guided this study was: To what extent is there a relationship between metacognitive instruction using Reciprocal Teaching method and increasing student success for first-grade emergent readers as evidenced by Curriculum-based Measurements and STAR Accelerated Reader tests. Constructivism theory was used to develop an understanding of learning that asserts student learning happens when students make meaning for themselves. The sample for this study was a convenient of 16 first-grade …