Educational Methods Commons^™

Bringing The Harlem Children's Zone To Georgia: Making The Program Work In Small-Town America, Andrea L. Dennis, Tim Johnson, Rasuli Lewis, Robin Shearer

Working in the Public Interest Conferences

Explains how the Harlem Children's Zone helps students graduate from post-secondary schools despite some legal and political barriers, and explores the program's potential in Athens, Georgia.

What Are They Doing And How Are They Doing It? Rural Student Experiences In Virtual Schooling, Michael Barbour, Janette Hill

Education Faculty Publications

This qualitative study examined a Canadian virtual school learning experience for students and the kinds of support and assistance most frequently used and valued by students learning in a virtual environment. Students were interviewed and observed during their virtual school classes. In-school teachers were also interviewed and online teachers were also observed. Data were analyzed using the constant comparative method. Findings indicated that during their scheduled asynchronous class time students were often assigned seatwork or provided time to work on assignments, however, students rarely used this time to complete virtual schoolwork. It was during their synchronous class time that both …

Experiment In Small-Group Homework Tutoring For Remedial Mathematics Students: Preliminary Results, Alice W. Cunningham, Olen Dias, Nieves Angulo

Publications and Research

This paper presents the preliminary results of an 18-section experiment conducted during the Fall 2010 semester regarding the impact of small-group homework-completion tutoring on the performance of Hostos’ remedial mathematics students. The research in question was performed pursuant to a grant, Improving Undergraduate Mathematics Learning: The Effect of Small-Group Homework Tutoring on Remedial Mathematics Learning, from the CUNY Central Office of Academic Affairs. Permission from Hostos’ Institutional Review Board was granted for the conduct of the experiment and for the dissemination of the results.

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 …

2011 Ijbe Front Matter, Tamra Connor

International Journal for Business Education

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

Bookgrowl: Podcasting Back To The Campus, Frederic W. Murray

Faculty Articles & Research

No abstract provided.

Effects Of Student-Centered, Inquiry-Based Teaching On Performance, Attitudes, And Efficacy, Brad Bailey, Karen Briggs, Tom Cooper

SoTL Commons Conference

As part of research supported by the Educational Advancement Foundation, the authors conducted a quasi-experimental study comparing the effects of a student-centered and inquiry-based teaching technique, known as a Modified Moore Method or MMM, with those of lecture-based teaching methods. To study the students' attitudes, beliefs and self-efficacy and performance, the students were asked to complete a survey twice each semester and take a common final exam. This panel session includes a description of what MMM entails, what the students and instructors do both in class and out, and how MMM could be used in other classes. We will discuss …

Formulaic Writing Advice: A False Panacea, James Edward Martin

Research Collection Centre for English Communication

Over the past decade, as the long institutionalized process writing pedagogy has been increasingly questioned, many teachers have found it a challenge to create viable classroom teaching philosophies and practices. As Richard Fulkerson (2005) has noted, there is currently a wide lack of consensus about how to teach writing. In this environment, it is not surprising that teachers sometimes tend to rely on commonsensical formulae to ground their instruction. In fact, this tendency toward formulaic teaching has been common in the field of writing instruction for a very long time, although it may have taken different forms. To give an …

Professional Writing In The English Classroom: Beyond Language: The Grammar Of Document Design, Jonathan Bush, Leah A. Zuidema

Faculty Work Comprehensive List

The article offers guidelines in teaching professional writing in an English classroom. It highlights the elements in deciding for a good document design which include layout, fonts and color. It outlines the CRAP acronym (Contrast, Repetition, Alignment, Proximity) formulated by Saul Greenberg which summarizes the essential techniques in grammar design.

Using Family Literacy Training To Address Summer Reading Loss, Janet L. Deck

Selected Faculty Publications

Maintaining reading proficiency throughout summer months is problematic for struggling readers. Conceptually framed by sociocultural constructivism, the purpose of this study was to determine parents‘ knowledge and understanding of effective research-based literacy instruction and to establish the participants‘ perceived effect of their participation in family literacy training on their elementary children‘s reading achievement. In this qualitative case study, the influence of family literacy training on summer literacy practices of three families with elementary children was examined. Data were collected using individual interviews with three parents. Interview transcripts were analyzed using an inductive analytical approach. The results of this study demonstrated …

Choice Theory: An Effective Approach To Classroom Discipline And Management, Elvin Gabriel, Lionel Matthews

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

School Leadership: Development Of An Evaluation Instrument And Process For Administrators, Kathy L. Mccormick

Theses and Dissertations

This action research study was conducted for purposes of changing the formal evaluation for school administrators to one constructed around the Interstate School Leaders Licensure Consortium (ISLLC) 2008 standards, inclusive of multifaceted components aimed to increase the active participation of both the evaluator and the individual being evaluated. The previous instrument assessed leaders' performance on a set of generic indicators. There were no requirements for pre-evaluation conferences, nor did the school leader have formal opportunity for self-reflection. Outcomes were not linked to district goals, to individual or district professional growth plans, nor to standards or criteria-based process of leadership assessment. …

Employing Cogenerative Dialogue To Share Classroom Authority, Edward Lehner

Publications and Research

In America’s high schools, particularly in large urban centers, racial and social class differences separating a teacher and students can create classroom management concerns that could seriously impede upon learning. These classroom management difficulties may branch from the misalignment between a teacher’s instructional methods and students’ learning approaches. This research reports data gathered from a New York City High School Suspension Center during a 9 month school year, including results from 56 focus group interviews and 300 hours of classroom observation. The data analysis reveals that classroom behavioral problems and authority concerns are prominent themes in this school. Informed by …

Honors Thesis Rubrics: A Step Toward More Consistent And Valid Assessment In Honors, Mark Haggerty, Theodore Coladarci, Mimi Killinger, Charlie Slavin

Journal of the National Collegiate Honors Council Online Archive

Several recent issues of the Journal of the National Collegiate Honors Council have devoted considerable space to questions of grading and assessing honors student work: the 2006 Forum on “Outcomes Assessment, Accountability, and Honors” (Frost et al.), the 2007 Forum on “Grades, Scores, and Honors” (Andrews et al.), and Greg Lanier’s expansive piece in 2008, “Towards Reliable Honors Assessment.” One target of assessment is the honors thesis, which is either a required or optional component of many honors programs and colleges and which poses a myriad of assessment challenges. What follows is a description and analysis of the attempt at …

Book Review: Rti With Differentiated Instruction, Grades 6 - 8: A Classroom Teacher's Guide, By J. O'Meara (2011), Hope E. Wilson

Faculty Publications

As school districts across the country move toward Response to Intervention (RTI) as a standardized way to meet the diverse needs of students in the classroom, Jodi O’Meara’s book provides practical and relevant information for middle level (grades 6 through 8) teachers on best practices for incorporating RTI and differentiation into their instruction, assessment, and pedagogy.

The Changing Roles Of Natural Resource Professionals: Providing Tools To Students To Teach The Public About Fire, Pat Stephens Williams, Brian Oswald, Karen Stafford, Justice Jones, David Kulhavy

Faculty Publications

The Arthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture (ATCOFA) at Stephen F. Austin State University is taking a proactive stance toward preparing forestry students to work closely with the public on fire planning in wildland-urban interface areas. ATCOFA's incorporation of the "Changing Roles" curriculum provides lessons on how natural resource managers' roles are (1) different than they used to be, and (2) ever-evolving. The undergraduate Forestry Field Station summer program at the University's Piney Woods Conservation Center now emphasizes the importance and challenges of working with the public. The program brings practicing professionals from the Texas Forest Service to describe …

Apparatus For Demonstrating Longitudinal Wave Pulses, Walter L. Trikosko, Thomas O. Callaway

Faculty Publications

For live classroom demonstrations there are a number of devices that have been used to simulate waves. Some are based upon a design produced by E. S. Ritchie & Sons1 and consist of rods and cams that are activated by turning a crank.2,3 These devices show what transverse and longitudinal waves look like, but they do not allow for the free manipulation of wave parameters and observations of the changes that take place. A simple device can be constructed using elastic bands and straws4 to demonstrate properties of transverse waves.

Program Evaluation Of Developmental Math Instruction At The Community College Level, John M. Mchugh

Education Dissertations and Projects

This program evaluation case study examined the academic effectiveness of a developmental math program in the southeastern United States. The CIPP Evaluation Model (Fitzpatrick, Sanders, & Worthen, 2004) was used as the framework for this program evaluation. The research questions used to guide the research were (1) what are the conditions leading to the necessity of a developmental mathematics program at the college level; (2) what other attempts have been made to solve the problem; (3) how does the implementation of the developmental math program at this college align with recommendations for appropriate instruction of developmental math students; (4) how …

The Relationship Of Teachers' Perceptions Of Collective Efficacy And Perceptions Of Professional Learning Communities, Danielle Shaw Robertson

Education Dissertations and Projects

The dissertation was designed to describe the relationship of collective teacher efficacy to the phases of professional learning communities (PLC) in a rural school district in the southern piedmont region of North Carolina. Limited research exists in the area of collective teacher efficacy and its relationship to professional learning communities, especially related to the phases of development conceptualized by Huffman and Hipp (2003) in their Professional Learning Community Organizer (PLCO).

The researcher gathered baseline data regarding the teachers' perceptions of their schools functioning as professional learning communities from the North Carolina Teacher's Working Conditions Survey given in the spring of …

A Case Study: The Effects Of Stakeholder Perceptions And Perceived Student Self-Efficacy On The Transition From Middle School To High School, Frank E. Wilson Jr.

Education Dissertations and Projects

High dropout rates and low on-time graduation rates across the United States suggest that for many students proper transitioning is not taking place from middle schools to high schools. This study was designed to examine what measure perceptions and expectations held by students, faculty, and parents dealing with transition from middle school to high school had on the ability of students to successfully make this transition. In addition, the researcher sought to determine the extent student self-efficacy had on individual students successfully making the transition from middle school to high school in regards to core academic performance, behaviors, and attendance. …

Technology-Assisted Formative Assessment And Its Impact On Instructional Decision Making: A Mixed Methods Collective Case Study Of Study Island In The Middle Grades, Kelly Cameron Taylor

Education Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this mixed methods collective case study was to determine the use of formative assessment data generated by the web-based program Study Island in the planning and implementation of instruction. The study utilized quantitative data collected through teacher surveys then triangulated qualitative teacher focus group and individual teacher interview data in order to establish statistical themes for narrative analysis. The research focused on data generated by the Study Island program at three rural middle schools, Grades 6 through 8, located in the western region of North Carolina.

The need for data to help teachers determine the next steps …

The Impact Of Single-Gender Scheduling On Students In A Title I School, Janet L. Moss

Education Dissertations and Projects

This dissertation was designed to examine the impact that single-gender scheduling would have on students who attend a struggling Title I middle school. The importance of the middle level cannot be denied. Strong research points to this time in a student's life as the pivotal crux on which success and failure are balanced. Middle level educators are charged with the responsibility of tipping the scales in the favor of student success by arming them with the skills they will need to survive and succeed.

A middle school in the northeastern part of Mecklenburg County had the majority of its students …

Analysis Of The North Carolina High School To Community College Articulation Agreement's Impact On Student Motivation In A North Carolina High School, Shaun Christian Poole

Education Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this sequential explanatory case study was to explore the impact of the North Carolina High School to Community College Articulation Agreement on student motivation to (a) perform well in the course as defined by the State of North Carolina award of college credit, (b) graduate high school, (c) pursue college or postsecondary training in course content, and (d) select a career in the course field. The study utilized quantitative data collected through student surveys then triangulated qualitative student focus group and teacher focus group interview data in order to establish statistical themes for narrative analysis. The research …

Teacher Understanding And Perception Of A Response To Intervention Program In A Rural, Western North Carolina School District, Dwight Dean King

Education Dissertations and Projects

Response to Intervention, aka Response to Instruction (RtI), is a multi-tiered instructional process designed to provide research-based interventions to struggling learners. It has recently gained increased popularity with the perceived failure of the discrepancy formula model of placing children in special education services and with the recent reauthorization of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. Because RtI is just gaining ground in the field of education, limited research regarding teachers' perceptions of the process is available. This research project utilized a mixed-methods approach, combining survey and interview data, to assess teacher understanding and perception of RtI in a rural North …

High School English Teachers' Perceptions Of Rigor In Student Assignments, Cynthia S. Misenheimer

Education Dissertations and Projects

This research was designed to examine the perceptions of high school English teachers as to the amount of rigor present in their student assignments as evidenced by a rubric based upon the revised Bloom's taxonomy.

The researcher developed a rubric to assess the amount of rigor based upon the revised Bloom's taxonomy. Teachers of standards and honors level English classes in high schools from two school systems were asked to assess four of their student assignments that they considered challenging utilizing the rubric. They were also asked to rank the assignment with a level of rigor from one for low …

An Analysis Of Individual Teachers' Development Of Instruction Based On Classscape Program Data, Jason L. Parker

Education Dissertations and Projects

This dissertation was designed to examine and assess the effectiveness of the ClassScape formative assessment tool on the planning, implementation, and evaluation of instruction at a rural middle school in western North Carolina. The teachers had the ClassScape program for 3 years, but were not using the program to plan future instruction. The tools used for data collection revealed the strengths and weaknesses of the implementation of the program. It is essential that schools have ongoing formative assessment practices in order for students to be successful in the 21st Century.

This case study utilized the mixed methods approach in order …

The Impact Of A Freshman Academy On High School Transition, Sherry Grier Veasey

Education Dissertations and Projects

This dissertation was designed to identify and describe the impact a freshman academy has on high school transition for ninth-grade students at a rural high school in western North Carolina. This case study investigated the problems ninth graders encounter as they transition from middle school to high school. The study examined student achievement, student attendance, and the graduation rate in an effort to determine whether a freshman academy at the high school helped students transition successfully.

The transition to high school may be difficult for some students because of the countless changes they are experiencing as adolescents. The high school …

Can Reading Questions Foster Active Learning? A Study Of Six College Courses, Kathryn M. Plank, Tomas M. Koontz

Faculty Scholarship

Many instructors strive to encourage student reading outside of class and active learning in class. One pedagogical tool, structured reading questions, can help do both. Using examples from question sets across six courses, the authors illustrate how reading questions can help students achieve the six active-learning principles described by Svinicki (1991). Qualitative and quantitative assessment data indicate that students often complete readings before class, that they view the questions as very helpful in their learning, and that they use the questions primarily to help understand what information is important and connect it to prior knowledge. Some differences in use are …

Preparation For Full Time Employment: A Capstone Experience For Students In Leadership Programs, Gregory T. Gifford, Karen J. Cannon, Nicole L. Stedman, Ricky W. Telg

Department of Agricultural Leadership, Education, and Communication: Faculty Publications

This practice paper describes the development and implementation of a senior capstone course for communication and leadership development for undergraduate students. The resulting course is a unique combination of experiential skill development and career preparation. The success of this course provides students with an important and meaningful culmination of their undergraduate experiences.

Come Si Fa?: Can Virtual Worlds Help Us Promote Intercultural Awareness, Susanna Nocchi

Conference Papers

This paper describes the author’s experience with a pilot course of Italian in SL®2. The course is part of a PhD research on Exploring the potential of virtual worlds to promote Intercultural Awareness in students learning Italian as a Foreign Language. In the paper the author will justify her choice of virtual worlds for the development of language competence and Intercultural Awareness and will present some results of her activity theoretical analysis of the data. Problematic areas and potential moments for the development of Intercultural Awareness were highlighted during the analysis.