Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research Commons^™

The Potential Of Rethinking The Teacher Observation And Evaluation Model, Cheryl L. Lang

All Theses And Dissertations

Today, across the United States of America, ongoing efforts are underway to transform the teacher evaluation system into a useful and manageable tool for improving teaching and learning in the classrooms. Currently, school districts in Maine are required to implement teacher observation and evaluation systems as a method of improving instructional practices in the classrooms. According to Mezirow’s adult learning theory, adults learn best when the learning fits into their frame of reference that has been long cultivated through maturity into adulthood, and they become invested in what they are learning. School districts have an opportunity to make teacher observations …

Geo-Spatial Mapping As A Catalyst For Creative And Engaged Design In Engineering Education, Jessie Zarazaga

Multidisciplinary Studies Theses and Dissertations

Exploiting the technology of geo-spatial mapping student designers can develop deep understandings of the rich and layered data of a spatial context, a situational understanding essential to responsible civic design. However the actions inherent in the construction of spatial data armatures can simultaneously be harnessed as creative strategies, in which mapping processes become the context for generative spatial play. The ambition of this study is to propose efficient pedagogic structures to help prepare civil and environmental student engineers to be not only strong participants, but leaders, in the design of the built environment. The interpretation of site data, mapped as …

An International Comparative Study: Exploring Students’ College And Career Readiness Needs, Olcay Yavuz, Sabri Dogan, Omer Faruk Kabakci

Journal of Research Initiatives

This international quantitative study was designed to investigate the college and career readiness needs of students in the U.S. and Turkey. Results indicated that there are various factors including gender, country type, academic achievement, parent education and parent socio-economic status influence the students’ perception of college and career readiness. The significant findings and discussions provide school leaders, policy makers and counselors with valuable information to improve student achievement and school effectiveness through identifying and prioritizing the specific attitudes, knowledge and skills students should be able to demonstrate for their college and career readiness.

Developing A Rubric To Assess Critical Thinking In A Multidisciplinary Context In Higher Education, Sadia Muzaffar Bhutta, Sahreen Chauhan, Syeda Kausar Ali, Raisa Gul, Shanaz Cassum, Tashmin Khamis

Institute for Educational Development, Karachi

Critical thinking (CT) is a generic attribute that is greatly valued across academic disciplines in higher education, and around the globe. It is also defined as one of the graduate attributes of higher education for the sample private university where this research was conducted, as it is perceived that CT helps the graduate to become ‘engaged citizens’ in the twenty-first century. Despite the well-documented importance of CT, its assessment remains a challenge. This study addresses this challenge through the systematic development and field-testing of a rubric for assessing critical thinking in a multidisciplinary context in higher education. A multidisciplinary group …

An Exploration Of Professional Preparedness Of Instructional Designers To Evaluate, Philena V. Devaughn

STEMPS Theses & Dissertations

Formative, summative, and confirmative evaluation of instructional products determine whether learner objectives have been attained and substantiate the value of the instruction. The ability to implement an evaluation plan is classified as an essential skill for instructional designers by the International Board of Standards for Training and Performance Improvement (IBSTPI). Previous research has ascertained that entry-level instructional designers have failed to master the skills required to create evaluation plans.

The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine the professional preparation received by instructional designers, for instruction evaluation, through graduate level programs. The data collected for this study was the …

Building Entrepreneurial Self-Efficacy (Ese): How Undergraduate Students Make Meaning Of Their Entrepreneurial Experiences, Amy Kurfist

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Theses & Dissertations

This qualitative, interview-based research study explores how undergraduate students at a single research university make meaning of their experiences in curricular and co-curricular university entrepreneurship programming. The study focuses on the developmental relationship between entrepreneurship education and feelings of entrepreneurial self-efficacy (ESE) and how feelings of ESE relate to future entrepreneurial intentions. I explore three of Bandura’s (1977) predictors of self-efficacy: mastery experiences, vicarious experiences, and social persuasion interwoven with the six dimensions of ESE developed by De Noble, Jung, and Ehrlich (1999) to determine how undergraduate students make meaning of their entrepreneurial experiences.

Through the analysis of data collected …

Improving The Rigor Of Online Education: Exploring Characteristics Of Faculty And Syllabi Within An Online Program Assessment Process, Brad J. Hamel

All NMU Master's Theses

As online course enrollments grow, overall perception of rigor still lags compared to that of traditional face-to-face education. The purpose of this research was to tie faculty and syllabi characteristics to the rigor of online courses. This study explored the relationship between faculty and syllabi characteristics and performance on an online entry-level course design quality assurance assessment (pass, pass with concern, or fail). A decision tree analysis was used to predict the relationship of the independent (faculty and syllabi characteristics) and the dependent (entry-level course design assessment) variables. Findings suggest that faculty rank and writing intensive are key characteristics predictive …

Place-Based Learning As An Effective Methodology For Developing Self-Efficacy Skills In Students With Learning Disabilities, Melodee Carter-Guyette

All Theses And Dissertations

Research shows that place-based learning is a proven methodology in supporting students in achievement of their academic and social needs. There are inconsistencies related to documenting its success with learning disabled students, especially in the area of self-efficacy. This study attempted to fill this gap in the literature by exploring the perception of educators regarding self-efficacy of students with learning disabilities who have experienced environmental science place-based programs. Elementary educators were recruited from a broad pool of participants via social media. One hundred seventy surveys were received from educators in the six New England states. Five participants provided in-depth information …

Teachers’ Perceptions Of Professional Learning Communities, Violet E. Eyanagho

All Theses And Dissertations

The professional learning community (PLC) is an essential organizational structure in education, intended to cultivate a collaborative culture, improve professional practices, increase student achievement, reform failing schools, and sustain high achieving schools. Because there is little in the literature which examines teachers’ perceptions of the PLC concept and the work accomplished in the PLC process, the problem studied here was teachers’ perceptions of their work in PLCs at a middle school in Texas. The two research questions addressed the roles of the PLC teams and their individual members in improving student learning. A grounded theory approach was used in the …

How Ideology And Pedagogy Impact Technology Adoption In The Classroom, A Causal-Comparative Study, Christopher J. Bernard

All Theses And Dissertations

As the world changes from an industrial driven society to one more focused on services and knowledge, the drive for change within higher education is mounting from both students and employers. With the availability of the vast majority of the world’s knowledge available to an ever-increasing populace via the Internet, students and employers alike are no longer satisfied with the three r’s – reading, writing, and arithmetic. Instead, employers are expecting graduates to be knowledgeable of the three C’s – collaboration, communication, and creative problem solving to negotiate a progressively complex global market.

Through advances in cognitive science, we now …

The Lived Experiences Of Clinical Adjunct Dental Hygiene Faculty, Susan Lori Vogell

All Theses And Dissertations

Clinical education is an integral part of a dental hygiene student’s education. Clinical adjunct dental hygiene faculty primarily teach in the clinical setting. Clinical adjunct dental hygiene faculty are often hired for their clinical expertise and may lack teaching experience. The transition from clinical practice to academia raises concern about the adequacy of support and preparation clinical adjunct faculty receive as they begin their new role as educators. The purpose of this interpretative phenomenological analysis was to explore clinical adjunct dental hygiene faculty members’ experiences of preparedness as they transitioned from clinical expert to novice educator. Six clinical adjunct dental …

Bilingual Student's Perceptions Of English-Only Education: A Study Of Hispanic Students In Central Florida, Lilliam Roman

Doctor of Education (Ed.D)

In higher education, the number of Hispanic immigrant students has steadily increased, particularly in central Florida. The purpose of this quantitative study was to analyze the perceptions of higher education Hispanic students whose home language is Spanish and who are enrolled in English-only and bilingual degree programs in two central Florida universities. A quantitative, non-experimental survey research approach was utilized. A variety of descriptive, associative, and inferential statistical techniques were used to answer the research questions. A response rate of 12.7% (n = 71) was achieved. There was no difference in the overall perception of course efficacy between participants enrolled …

Student Connectedness And Academic Achievement: A Quantitative Study Of Career And Technical Education Students, Kern Mcginley

CUP Ed.D. Dissertations

The focus of this correlational study in an Alaskan career and technical (CTE) school environment was to explore the research question that guided this study: In a large urban school district of Alaska, with a diverse student population, what is the relationship between the CTE student connectedness level and academic achievement levels? Participants included 132 high school students, Grades 10 through 12. Additional research questions were developed to examine the strength of the relationship between student connectedness and academic achievement by gender and ethnicity. Data were collected using an online survey with a combination of demographic questions and Goodenow’s (1993b) …

Whose Responsibility Is It? A Statewide Survey Of School Librarians On Responsibilities And Resources For Teaching Digital Citizenship, Abigail L. Phillips, Victor R. Lee

Instructional Technology and Learning Sciences Faculty Publications

In 2015 the Utah State Legislature passed H.B. 213, “Safe Technology Utilization and Digital Citizenship in Public Schools,” mandating that K–12 schools provide digital citizenship instruction. This study presents an exploratory endeavor to understand how school librarians in a state that adopted digital citizenship legislation engage with digital citizenship instruction and their perceptions of a school librarian’s role in providing this instruction. We conducted a statewide survey of Utah school librarians, including questions focusing on digital citizenship resources used, current instruction within the school, and inquiries about improvements to current instruction. School librarians expressed a desire to be more involved …

Overview Of The 2018 Inclusion In Science, Learning A New Direction, Conference On Disability (Island), Cary A. Supalo, Jasodhara Bhattacharya, Daniel Steinberg

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

No abstract provided.

Supporting Young Children Of Immigrants In Prek-3

Occasional Paper Series

This special issue of the Occasional Paper Series describes practices and policies that can positively impact the early schooling of children of immigrants in the United States. We consider the intersectionality of young children’s lives and what needs to change in order to ensure that race, class, immigration status, gender, and dis/ability can effectively contribute to children’s experiences at school and in other instructional contexts, rather than prevent them from getting the learning experiences they need and deserve.

From The Co-Editors..., Todd Pagano, Sami Kahn

Journal of Science Education for Students with Disabilities

No abstract provided.

Elementary Mathematics And #Blacklivesmatter, Theodore Chao, Maya M. Marlowe

Occasional Paper Series

The #BlackLivesMatter movement has opened up conversations in schools across the country about systemic racism, a “new” civil rights movement, and the treatment of children of color. In this article, a veteran elementary teacher uses the #BlackLivesMatter movement to help her students see the power of mathematics in their own lives, taking care to first connect with her school community so as not to incite trauma. Using an age-appropriate activity to investigate the feelings of anger felt by the Black community of Ferguson County, Missouri, shortly before the police murdered Michael Brown, we construct a conversation on what elementary mathematics …

The World In Your Pocket: Digital Media As Invitations For Transdisciplinary Inquiry In Mathematics Classrooms, Lynette Deaun Guzmán, Jeffrey Craig

Occasional Paper Series

Building a curriculum from online digital media may provide opportunities for students to draw on their funds of knowledge, deconstruct dominant narratives, and engage with complex multimodal artifacts. We focus on an example of how we have used a digital infographic, The World as 100 People, to unpack global and local issues in mathematics classrooms. Using digital media as invitations for critical mathematical inquiry, we call for mathematics educators to push back on (1) the way mathematics should be formally taught in schools, and (2) a common practice of social media restrictions in schools.

Collaboration And Critical Mathematical Inquiry: Negotiating Mathematics Engagement, Identity, And Agency, Frances K. Harper

Occasional Paper Series

When faced with the challenge of supporting students to do the “messy” mathematical work necessary for exploring social justice problems through critical mathematical inquiry, teachers might rely on more procedural or direct instruction. Because how students learn matters as much as what they learn, this can inadvertently limit students’ engagement with mathematics. Instructional strategies designed to foster equitable collaboration can support critical mathematical inquiry by promoting norms for equitable student engagement and mathematics identity development. As teachers and students negotiate what counts as mathematics engagement and who has access to mathematics, students’ authority over mathematics and social justice issues increases.

The Influence Of An Interdisciplinary Elementary Curriculum On Student Outcomes: Providing Cognitive Student Learning Through An Integrated Approach, Ann Marie Harris

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

In order to provide students at the elementary level a thorough and efficient method of learning, the integrated–interdisciplinary approach to teaching curriculum was explored to reveal the impact on student achievement of fourth graders across the state of New Jersey in a randomly selected grouping of 50 schools using integrated–interdisciplinary curriculum and 50 schools using subject-specific curriculum. The research was an investigation of the integrated–interdisciplinary approach to teaching when compared with subject-specific curriculum to explore the impact on student achievement.

Integration of curriculum aligned to the state standards at the elementary level was a focus for this research; elementary curriculum …

Developing An Assessment Framework: Measuring Digital Literacy Of Interior Design Students In A Digital Drawing Course, Somang Yang

Theses and Dissertations

This exploratory study provides a foundation to measure students’ level of learning based on education theory for digital technology and meaningful technology theory for digital literacy. There has yet to exist an effective assessment tool that can evaluate students’ digital literacy. To provide initial insight into the digital technology integrated course development, Wacom pen-tablet and Autodesk Sketchbook were utilized to create an interior design curriculum for undergraduate college students. The findings of this study shed light on the necessity of assessing new technology for integration into coursework in higher education. There are five themes that an instructor must examine when …

Continuous Improvement In Academic Affairs, Jen Wells

Assessment in Action Conference

As faculty, we are asked to focus on teaching, research, and service; how we manage our work is often pre-determined by how we allocate time to these three elements. With that, the question is where assessment and continuous improvement fit. This presentation will offer a model of continuous improvement and ideas on how it can be integrated in your current work and not as a check the box exercise. We will also review how assessment can be scaffolded and implemented at the graduate level.

Equitable Technology Integration: Kentucky Technology Integration Certification, Stacie Barnett-Slusher

Morehead State Theses and Dissertations

A capstone submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Education in the College of Education at Morehead State University by Stacie Barnett-Slusher on March 12, 2019.

Early Career Teacher Development Program: Two-Years-On Survey Development, Katherine L. Dix, Syeda Kashfee Ahmed

Professional learning for teachers and school leaders

This report, the second of three, presents insights into the development of the Two-Years-On survey to inform the South Australian Department for Education’s Early Career Teacher Development (ECTD) program evaluation, conducted by the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER). The focus of Report 2 is a review of existing similar surveys and the development of this new survey for the evaluation in 2019 and possible ongoing use for program monitoring. The program was launched in January 2017 and is designed to support the induction and professional development of early career teachers (ECTs) in their first two years. The program involves …

Substituting Open Educational Resources For Commercial Curriculum Materials: Effects On Student Mathematics Achievement In Elementary Schools, John Hilton Iii, Ross Larsen, David Wiley, Lane Fischer

Entrepreneurship Faculty Research

Open Educational Resources (OER) have the potential to replace commercial learning materials in education. An empirical examination of this potential was conducted, comparing the end-of-year mathematics test results of 12,110 elementary school students clustered within 95 schools from five school districts in the state of Washington in the United States of America. Of this group, 6796 students used open learning materials, and 5314 used commercial educational resources. When three years of test scores were considered, there were no statistically significant differences in the exam scores of students who used open versus commercial curriculum materials. The lack of statistical significance may …

International Student Adjustment Framework: Improvement Through Educational Leadership, Hilda Cecilia Contreras Aguirre

Journal of Educational Leadership in Action

The ever-growing student population diversity in American universities demands better comprehension to meet international graduate students' academic, sociocultural, and personal needs. Based on prior international student adaptation models, this researcher proposed a conceptual framework of international students’ adjustment in graduate studies. Such adaptation process was analyzed through four stages: vulnerability, self-awareness, alliances, and synergy. Additionally, the importance of student affairs professionals and faculty leadership in supporting this student population was addressed as well. Lastly, this paper included implications and recommendations to smooth the adjustment process of international students to the education settings in the United States; hence, helping in their …

Swift, Nustar And Xmm-Newton Observations Of The Nls1 Galaxy Rxj2317.8–4422 In An Extreme X-Ray Low Flux State, Dirk Grupe

Faculty Research at Morehead State University

We report the discovery of RX J2317.8–4422 in an extremely low X-ray flux state by the Neil Gehrels Swift observatory in 2014 April/May. In total, the low-energy X-ray emission dropped by a factor 100. We have carried out multi-wavelength follow- up observations of this Narrow-Line Seyfert 1 galaxy. Here we present observations with Swift, XMM-Newton, and NuSTAR in October and November 2014 and further monitoring observations by Swift from 2015 to 2018. Compared with the beginning of the Swift observations in 2005, in the November 2014 XMM-Newton and NuSTAR observation RX J2317–4422.8 dropped by a factor of about 80 in …

Language In Leadership: A Dialogic (Re)Assessment Of The Four Frames Approach For Educational Administrators, Jeremy Dennis

Journal of Educational Leadership in Action

Educators have found the theories of Paulo Freire attractive for a variety of reasons. As more scholars in critical pedagogy highlight the interdisciplinary appeal and applicability of Freirean thought, they have attracted the attention of faculty in a wide range of disciplines and interdisciplines, including leadership studies. However, the integration of Freirean concepts with those in leadership theory can be productive and problematic for teacher-leaders. Integration has led to the emergence of transformative practices. It also resulted in the proliferation of conceptual innovations and proposals that, upon closer inspection, reveal how ideas and concepts often compete when they are (mis)appropriated. …

An Examination Of The Correlation Of Exploring Computer Science Course Performance And The Development Of Programming Expertise, Steven Mcgee, Ronald I. Greenberg, Randi Mcgee-Tekula, Jennifer Duck, Andrew M. Rasmussen, Lucia Dettori, Dale F. Reed

Computer Science: Faculty Publications and Other Works

This study investigated patterns in the development of computational thinking and programming expertise in the context of the Exploring Computer Science (ECS) program, a high school introductory CS course and professional development program designed to foster deep engagement through equitable inquiry around CS concepts. Prior research on programming expertise has identified three general areas of development --- program comprehension, program planning, and program generation. The pedagogical practices in ECS are consistent with problem solving approaches that support the development of programming expertise. The study took place in a large urban district during the 2016--17 school year with 28 ECS teachers …