Educational Methods Commons^™

Multiage Education, Wendy S. Matson

Graduate Research Papers

This paper is a review of the literature relative to multiage practices in education. The primary focus of this paper is to review the benefits and problems of multiage practices in today's elementary classroom. The intent of this paper is to present a balanced view of the pros and cons concerning the education of children in a multiage environment. This discussion focused on some of the problems educators face in trying to do so.

The conclusion of this study found the teacher, the parent, and the administration are vital as a cooperative unit in educating a child, as each teaching …

Intergenerational Education, Alison Sherer

Graduate Research Papers

This study addresses the issue of intergenerational education and its effects on children, the elderly and society in general. Benefits, as well as problems, associated with intergenerational programs were discussed. Guidelines for planning and implementing a successful intergenerational program were outlined and conclusions were drawn from the literature. Recommendations were made for future intergenerational programs.

Guiding Peer Conferences In The Process Of Writing, Cheryl Kremer

Graduate Research Papers

Children can only become experienced writers by learning to use the writing process through opportunities to write and through modeling of strategies by their teacher. Children will especially benefit from questions and comments that are appropriate to make during a writing conference. This instruction may first take place during all-class conferences and eventually move to conferences between students (Graves, 1983). Conferences may have many purposes, but according to Graves (1994), the most basic purpose for a conference is to give the students time to share where they are in the writing process and to figure out where they are headed.

Ability Grouping In The Elementary School, Ellen M. Azinger

Graduate Research Papers

Ability grouping has been used in schools for many years in an attempt to meet children's instructional needs. Is this type of grouping nurturing for children? The purpose of this paper is to examine ability grouping and then to offer the alternative of flexible grouping to extend the instructional program at the elementary level. Flexible grouping allows students to more readily pursue meaningful learning, thus extending their abilities.

Portfolios : An Implementation Report, Anna Burnham

Graduate Research Papers

Today's educators are acquiring a clearer picture of student learning and growth. To achieve a more comprehensive assessment of student growth, teachers are turning to alternative assessment tools. One such tool is a portfolio. What is a portfolio? What is the purpose of a portfolio? How does one design and implement portfolios? The purpose of this article is to answer these questions and to study, first hand, how elementary teachers in Charles City, Iowa are designing and implementing portfolios.

After reviewing published literature and research, a survey instrument was created to answer questions concerning design, implementation, and other elements of …

Success At Last : One Teacher's Growth In Understanding Of Writer's Workshop, Cindy L. Davis

Graduate Research Papers

Writer's workshop is an approach to teaching writing that corresponds to the whole language philosophy. Much of the literature published on the topic of whole language, and specifically writer's workshop, describes the ideal classroom environment. However, "whole language in the intermediate classroom is often given less attention in professional books and journals than the primary classroom receives" (Gannon-Smith, 1991). As a reading and language arts teacher of sixth grade students, I have been interested in teaching writing through the use of writer's workshop. There are some general whole language themes which can be used to build a motivating writing environment …

A Structural Analysis Of The Information Problem Solving Strategies Of Selected Home Schooled Students, Jacquelyn M. Stoakes

Graduate Research Papers

This research investigated the information problem solving curriculum of home schooled students who lived in four central Iowa school districts, all of whom belonged to the same home school networking group. Fourteen home schooling parents were interviewed, and asked to respond to questions dealing with the research process, and how those skills were being taught, the major focus being on whether the skills were taught as part of the curriculum, or in supplement to it, and whether information problem solving was taught as a process or separately as content. Use of electronic searching was also investigated.

This study indicated that …

The Use Of Multiple Intelligences In Designing Curriculum For An Early Childhood Classroom, Dawn Osterhaus

Graduate Research Papers

Early childhood curriculum implementation is not yet well represented in the literature pertaining to multiple intelligences. For purposes of this project, the literature pertaining to early childhood classrooms where the seven multiple intelligences were implemented was reviewed, and a preschool implementing the seven multiple intelligences has been written. This curriculum makes a difference in how the authors' lesson plans are designed and classroom activities are chosen. The resulting curriculum may also make a difference in how other early childhood educators set up their overall curriculum, and provides an easy-to-follow resource guide of potential use when planning individual units and activities.

The Unit Letter : A Strategy For Reconciling Explicit Instruction And Whole Language, Lucy Butin Ashby

Graduate Research Papers

Though differences between whole language and explicit instruction theories and research may seem irreconcilable, a growing body of research advocates an integration of the two. Combining the meaning-filled and student-empowering environment of whole language with needs-based explicit instruction is the solution most highly recommended. The unit letter activity is a teaching strategy for elementary-aged students which blends explicit instruction and whole language approaches. The activity involves student interaction with a thematic-related letter. The activity's purposes are two-fold : to convey information related to a theme chosen by the students, and to provide an authentic context for learning and practicing reading …

Preservice Teachers’ Use Of Curriculum-Based Measurement In An Informal Assessment Based Reading Clinic, Tina M. Schroeder

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

This study investigated 13 preservice regular education reading teachers' use of curriculum-based measurement (CBM) data under specified conditions. Conditions included: (a) providing preservice teachers with 75 minutes of training in the use of CBM in reading, (b) biweekly CBM administration and graphing during a 10-week practicum experience, and (c) concomitant use of other reading measures [e. g., Reading Miscue Inventory (RMI), Running Records (RR)]. Exit interviews indicated that preservice teachers made use of CBM data in some, but not all, of the important ways suggested in the research literature. Preservice teachers provided the following positive ratings of CBM: (a) CBM …

Multiage Classrooms : Setting Up A Quality Program, Jan Lindeman

Graduate Research Papers

This study reviews the literature on multiage classrooms for setting up a quality multiage program. Both benefits and disadvantages of multiage classrooms are discussed. Benefits of multiage classrooms are the following: children work at their own levels, children work collaboratively with other students, and children learn to work with students of different ages. Disadvantages of multiage classrooms include the following: extra workload for teachers, parents suspicious about the effectiveness, and students compare themselves with older students.

Implementing a multiage classroom takes time and patience. Educators need to take time to examine the best way of implementing a quality program.

Problem-Based Learning: A Practical Process For A More Promising Future, Angie Ryken

Presidential Scholars Theses (1990 – 2006)

A perpetual issue m American society is that of the comprehensive goal of its educational system. A prevailing conviction among researchers, teachers, lawmakers, and parents is that the purpose of this country's schools is to cultivate effective thinking in students. In a society that exhibits complex and threatening problems, noted Raymond Nickerson , we cannot afford not to develop good thinking (Baron & Sternberg, 1987).

Integrating World Wide Web Searching Skills Into World Geography Information Skills Curriculum, Karla Steege Krueger

Graduate Research Papers

World Geography I students' experiences searching for information using preselected bookmarked sites on the World Wide Web were studied. Fifty-three ninth and tenth grade students in two sections of World Geography I at New Hampton High School in New Hampton, Iowa, were taught how to use bookmarks on the World Wide Web to retrieve information for a European Dream Vacation Itinerary. Students worked in pairs on the assignment. Each pair of students was given 30 minutes of class time to search the bookmarked sites and was required to find one item for its itinerary on the World Wide Web. Following …

Classroom Teacher Cadres: A Partnership Between Agencies That Is Designed To Inspire And Model "Best Teaching/Learning Practices" For Student Teachers, Richard G. Stahlhut, Richard R. Hawkes

Faculty Publications

This paper describes how the University of Northern Iowa constructed formal networks that increased communications with public school practitioners and infused new ideas into the teacher training program. Faculty in the Office of Student Field Experience decided all regional campuses of the university should provide some common experiences for teacher trainees; including not only a common core curriculum; but similar structures for delivery as well. The core curriculum was built on five ingredients: teaching experiences; seminars; journals; conferences; and action research projects. Each regional partnership agreed to arrange pre-student teaching field experiences and a semester of student teaching; as well …

Gifted Education And The Middle School Reform Movement : Finding The Basis For Collaboration Through Interdisciplinary Instruction, Sandra H. Christ

Graduate Research Papers

This review reflected on literature from gifted education and the middle school movement. Its purpose was to look for common beliefs as a basis for collaboration on interdisciplinary curriculum/instruction. Sources of information include personal observations and experiences, university library materials, and ERIC and World Wide Web searches.

A shared enthusiasm for interdisciplinary instruction and many of its benefits offers an encouraging sign for collaboration. Gifted education and the middle school movement share an understanding of the nature of interdisciplinary instruction and share the belief that students will benefit from higher achievement, increased connections, and strengthened learning concepts. However, caution is …

Process Of Educational Innovation: A Micropolitical Study Of The Implementation Of A Team Teaching Model, Bruce Steven Frana

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

This is a two-year case study, conducted in a large school district (over 10,000 students), of an attempt to introduce interdisciplinary team teaching at the high school level. The purpose of this study was to examine what teachers do and think as they engage in the process of implementing educational reform. I believed initially that the success or failure of educational reform depended largely on the actual teachers involved in implementing that reform. Once I was in the setting, however, it was clear that administrators must be included because reform depends on much more than what teachers do and think. …

Aids Education: The Effect Of Three Instructional Methods On Retention Of Changes In Knowledge, Attitudes, And Intention To Act, Denise Kerns Schares

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The purpose of this study was to compare the effectiveness of three instructional methods (unit only, unit plus infusion, and infusion only) for teaching high school students about Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS). Education, offered consistently and over time, can assist individuals in developing positive health behaviors associated with the prevention of AIDS. Successful implementation of community and school-based education programs can save lives in the years ahead (Taff,1987).

Four sections (N = 80) of a health education course were randomly assigned to one of four treatment conditions. The unit only treatment consisted of the presentation of the 4-session, Red …

A Report On The Assessment Procedures Used In The Evaluation Of Student Teaching At The Middle School Level, Joane W. Mckay

Faculty Publications

This conference paper on assessment of the qualities of student teachers in middle schools discusses the concepts of authentic assessment; continuous evaluation; the roles of the cooperating teacher and the university coordinator; and assessment procedures used at the University of Northern Iowa. Eleven categories are presented for use in determining; at mid-term of the student teaching experience; whether a student teacher is meeting the requirements to become an effective teacher. These are: knowledge of content and skills areas; knowledge of learners/learning process; use of instructional planning strategies; use of instructional strategies/teaching styles; use of management and discipline strategies; use of …

The Effects Of Multiage Grouping On Primary Students, Susan Mooney

Graduate Research Papers

This study analyzes the literature regarding the appropriateness of grouping children in multiage groups. The term multiage groups is defined here as the deliberate assembling of pupils together who are of, at least two or three chronological age groups.

Three issues are discussed in this regard: (1) What are the characteristics of the multiage approach? (2) Why is the multiage grouping approach becoming more popular? (3) What are the standards which would be applied when assigning children to multiage groups?

The history of multiage groups is addressed as well as the characteristics and reasons for the return in popularity of …

The Effects Of Spacing A Science Unit On Sound On The Conceptual Understanding Of Eighth Grade Students As Evaluated Through Concept Maps, Lyn Le Countryman

Faculty Book Gallery

In 1989, the National Science Teachers Association proposed a new "Scope, Sequence, and Coordination (SS & C)" for grade 7-12 science. Instead of studying science in one-year packages of physics, chemistry, biology, and earth/space science, proponents of SS & C proposed that students study each of these disciplines every year. The idea that students can learn and retain new material better if they study it in spaced intervals rather than all at once provided the focus for this study.

There is a base of psychological research demonstrating the positive effects of "spaced" practice on recall and recognition, but few of …

Exploring The Incidence And Predictability Problem Of Dyscalculia In A School-Based Urban Population In A Rural State, Andrew Robert Smith

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Dyscalculia denotes a type of learning disability in the area of mathematics. Dyslexia denotes a type of learning disability in the area of reading. A large number of students with a learning disability only in mathematics may not be receiving the necessary special services because of a dependence on reading as the main criterion for referral for services. Rosenberger (cited in Rubin, 1990) was quoted as saying that as much as 10% of the population might have dyscalculia. Limited research exists in the area of dyscalculia in terms of causality, incidence figures, and identification procedures. In this. study dyscalculic is …

The Effects Of The Use Of A Color Code In Graphic Presentation And Assessment On The Reader's Immediate Recall And Delayed Retention, Peggy Ann Posekany Pruisner

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The study investigated the effects of the use of a color code in graphic presentation and assessment of verbal material on the reader's immediate recall and delayed retention. Nine seventh-grade classes, containing a total of 132 students, were randomly assigned to one of four treatment groups: (a) color-coded graphic presentation with a color-coded graphic assessment, (b) color-coded graphic presentation with a black/white graphic assessment, (c) black-white graphic presentation with a color-coded graphic assessment, and (d) black/white graphic presentation with a black/white graphic assessment. The research design was a 2 x 2 x 2 factorial; the independent variables were the graphic …

Exploring The Incidence And Predictability Problem Of Dyscalculia In A School-Based, Rural Population In A Rural State, Karen Kimberley Annis

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The term learning disability denotes the inability to learn in keeping with one's potential when presented with the usual curriculum. Dyscalculia is learning disability manifested in the area of mathematics curriculum. Limited research exists in the area of dyscalculia in terms of both incidence and identification procedures. However, a fairly large number of school-aged children show deficits in this area. Despite the necessity for knowledge of mathematics, little emphasis is placed on the identification and remediation of mathematical learning disabilities. A prominent neurologist (Rosenberger, 1989) has hypothesized recently that as much as 10% of the population of school-aged children in …

Creative Drama As A Complementary Methodology To Cooperative Learning, Susan Lauree Willms Cantine

Graduate Research Papers

This study will examine the theories of cooperative learning and creative drama to determine if the use of creative drama can be an effective strategy to establish an enhanced environment for positive interdependence and to introduce students to the fundamental collaborative skills necessary to use cooperative learning.

The Effectiveness Of Response Interruption, Differential Reinforcement Of Other Behavior, And A Visual Cue, In The Treatment Of Self-Injurious Stereotypic Behavior, Clark Gunnell Porter

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The present study investigated the effectiveness of a combined procedure involving response interruption and DRO in the treatment of self-injurious stereotypy. A visual cue was utilized to assist in generalization and the subject's behavior was monitored outside of the treatment setting. The subject was a ten year old mentally deficient female who engaged in a self-injurious stereotypy involving the picking of skin from her fingers and hands. An ABAC single-subject design was utilized and the subject's behavior was monitored in her classroom on mornings following treatment. The treatment procedure was unsuccessful in reducing the frequency of the behavior and no …

A Survey Of Interdisciplinary Teaming In Iowa Middle Level Public Schools, Fred A. Willis Jr.

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The purpose of this study was to analyze the concept of interdisciplinary teaming in Iowa middle level public schools grades 6-8. Of importance to the study was a comparison of desirability, implementation, teacher and administrator attitudes, level of use and student self-concept in middle level school using, and schools not using interdisciplinary teaming.

The study utilized five specific instruments for gathering data. The demographic survey and innovation configuration checklist ascertained the components of interdisciplinary teaming and determined whether a school was a user or nonuser of the concept. The Stages of Concern survey and Level of Use interview developed for …

Manual Training: Its Role In The Development Of The Seventh-Day Adventist Educational System, Gerald Wayne Coy

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The purpose of this study was to examine the history of manual training within the Seventh-day Adventist educational system and determine its relationship to the development of manual training in the public schools of America. Consideration was also given to the present status of manual training within the Adventist system.

The research design was historical in form, and data were gathered covering three special areas: (a) the development of manual training in American public schools; (b) the establishment of Seventh-day Adventist education; and (c) the present status of technology education (the great-grandchild to manual training) within Adventist secondary education.

Research …

The Effects Of Language Variables On The Reading Comprehension Of Hearing-Impaired Children, Nancy L. Robbins

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Hearing-impaired children rarely learn to read well. They suffer no apparent deficit in perceptual skill or basic intelligence. Their difficulty appears to be linguistic in origin. But research on the reading ability of the deaf is inadequate to specify the precise nature of their linguistic disability.

The deaf lack knowledge of English phonology. Current reading instruction programs for them a.re based on the assumption that this is the cause of their reading problems. Recent research indicates, however, that phoneme-grapheme correspondences contribute little to the reading process and that phonics instruction may actually impede learning to read. It is unlikely that …

Lecture Versus Discussion In The Study Of Sophomore Library Skills, Sandri F. Gehrke

Graduate Research Papers

The purpose of this study was to determine which method of instruction--the lecture or the small group discussion--would achieve the best learning results as far as knowledge of certain unfamiliar materials was concerned.

Specifically, the author of this research study tried to answer this questions When an instructor is teaching "selected" reference books to average-ability sophomores in an English 10 library skills unit at Fort Dodge Senior High School, Fort Dodge, Iowa, which method of instruction--the lecture or the small group discussion--will achieve the best learning results as measured by an author- constructed post-test?

In this research study the author …

Learning Stations: One Method Of Individualization, Douglas Harrenstein

Graduate Research Papers

This research paper will attempt to answer the question: Learning stations: How do they work? Because of the current emphasis on individualization, learning stations offer one way of approaching individualization. The concept of learning stations hinges on the premise that the teacher can make better learning opportunities for more individual types.