Educational Methods Commons^™

Bim Collaboration In Student Architectural Technologist Learning, Malachy Mathews

Articles

This paper is the result of a qualitative case study which investigated the influence of building information modelling (BIM) collaboration on the learning of student architectural technologists based around a studio group project. The purpose of the paper is to disseminate knowledge gained into a new learning environment facilitated by the collaborative properties of a BIM application. A qualitative case study approach has been used to undertake the examination of the learners’ experiences during the project. This approach allowed the author to map the complex interaction between the participants during the stages of the collaborative design project. The paper provides …

Participants Perspective Of The Fas Redundant Placement Scheme, Maurice Collins, Robert Morris

Conference papers

The aim of this study is to gather and analyze feedback from participants of a scheme which was put in place in the early stages of the Irish economic recession to provide work placements to redundant Apprentices. As part of the research for this paper a series of qualitative interviews were conducted with partipancts of the FAS Redundant Apprentice Placement Scheme (RAPS). FAS is the authoriity which organises and administers the Statutory Apprentice Scheme in Ireland.The scheme detailed in this study was put in place to aid Apprentices who has been made redundant, to complete phases 3,5 and 7 of …

Teaching Through Interactions: Testing A Developmental Framework Of Teacher Effectiveness In Over 4,000 Classrooms, Bridget K. Hamre, Robert C. Pianta, Jason T. Downer, Jamie Decoster, Andrew J. Mashburn, Stephanie M. Jones, Joshua L. Brown, Elise Cappella, Marc Atkins, Susan E. Rivers, Marc A, Brackett, Aki Hamagami

Psychology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Validating frameworks for understanding classroom processes that contribute to student learning and development is important to advance the scientific study of teaching. This article presents one such framework, Teaching through Interactions, which posits that teacher-student interactions are a central driver for student learning and organizes teacher-student interactions into three major domains. Results provide evidence that across 4,341 preschool to elementary classrooms (1) teacher-student classroom interactions comprise distinct emotional, organizational, and instructional domains; (2) the three-domain latent structure is a better fit to observational data than alternative one- and two-domain models of teacher-student classroom interactions; and (3) the three-domain structure is …

From Theory To College Classrooms: Collaborative/Cooperative Learning Techniques That Work, Judith Longfield

Centers for Teaching Excellence: Presentations

Research demonstrates that engaging students in the learning process leads to improved attitudes, enhanced learning and student retention. In this session attendees will learn about the research behind cooperative and collaborative learning, how to form groups and create effective learning tasks, and be introduced to a variety of active learning techniques. Participant will also practice integrating collaborative learning techniques (CoLTs) into a course by developing a plan for using, grading and evaluating one or more CoLTs.

Has Time Expired For Zero Tolerance Policies?, Charles J. Russo

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

Zero-tolerance policies call for the consistent application of consequences for student offenses involving violence, bullying, tobacco, alcohol, drugs, and weapons in school or at school-sponsored events. As educators struggled to eliminate student violence during the last 25 years, states adopted zero-tolerance statutes to address the rise of juvenile delinquency and the possession of weapons and drugs in schools.

Insofar as debates over zero-tolerance policies rage as violence, bullying, drugs, tobacco, and weapons in schools continue to be a major concern for educators, the remainder of this column is divided into three substantive sections. The first section briefly reviews arguments in …

The Message 2.0: Perceptions Of Success From Members Of The Founding Class Of Mc Squared Stem High School, Jeffrey D. Mcclellan

Dissertations

This dissertation examines the methods of learning from the student’s perspective in order to understand what made the first graduating class of MC Squared successful. The conceptual model of student success composed of non-academic factors of motivation, social connectedness, and self-management was used for the lens from which to understand the six students in depth. Through the research, it was uncovered that diversified learning environments, a mastery based assessment system, and an unwavering acceptance of students within a challenging and supportive environment are essential to the success achieved at MC Squared STEM High School. Lastly, the seminal contribution of this …

Cataloging Lesson Plans Developed By Pre-Service Science Teachers During A Summer Research Experience, Robert Tollman Mclaren

Physics

This study is modeled after the senior project “Teachers Who Conduct Research and their Ability to Apply their Experience to Lesson Plans” by Cal Poly student Megan Ziegler and includes an independent analysis of the 2011 and 2012 lesson plans that participants in the STEM Teacher and Researcher (STAR) Program developed as part of their summer research experience. At the end of the STAR summer research program, STAR Fellows are required to submit lesson plans. During Spring Quarter of 2012, I had the opportunity to catalog lesson developed during Summer 2011. Later in Fall Quarter of 2012, Cal Poly undergraduates …

Slic: Family Science Backpacks For Preschoolers, Lorin Nevius

Psychology and Child Development

In this senior project, I reviewed existing literature regarding science instruction in preschool classrooms, young children’s capabilities and interest in learning science, what science is happening at home, as well as preschool teachers’ feelings toward teaching science. I explored the possibility of bridging the gap between the school and home environment by using a prepared informal learning tool that students could take home and complete with their family.

During the years children are in preschool, they are forming their understandings of the world around them (French, 2004; Nayfield, Brenneman & Gelman, 2011; Eshach & Fried, 2005). In developing these understandings, …

Impact Of Remedial Reading Interventions On A Secondary Student With Emotional Behavior Disorder: A Case Study, Lucinda Cooper

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Students who struggle with emotional behavior disorders (EBD) often enter high school with reading levels far below those of their peers. At the secondary level, these at-risk students must regularly read and write proficiently in order to demonstrate their literacy achievement and potential for success either in college or on the job. As a result, many EBD students choose to drop out of school instead of daily feeling that they do not measure up. This instrumental qualitative case study examined the impact of the five essential components of reading instruction, teacher modeling, repeated readings, and progress monitoring on the disruptive …

Social And Emotional Learning Competencies And Cross-Thematic Curriculum Related Skills Of Greek Students: A Multifactorial And Triangulation Analysis., Olympia Tsolou, Vasileios Margaritis

Journal of Educational Research and Practice

The cross-thematic curriculum (CTC) for school education has recently been implemented so that the quality of the Greek educational system is improved. This study aimed at assessing social and emotional learning competencies and CTC-related skills of 541 Greek students aged 11–13. Data triangulation was also used for validating these findings, having 145 school teachers reporting their perceptions on students' skills. Both students and teachers reported moderate scores of all students' skills. Multivariate analysis revealed that gender remained a significant predictor for high scores of all students' skills, and that the higher the grade level of the students, the lower the …

A Case Study Of After-School Activities In One School That Is Making Progress In Closing The Achievement Gap, Susan Robin Shugerman

Dissertations and Theses

Closing the achievement gap has been a national conversation for several decades and a priority for educators and researchers. By looking closely at one school which is showing exceptional success with closing the achievement gap for low income students and English language learners, this study seeks to understand how school personnel and parents view after-school activities and ways in which those activities may be impacting students who are making significant gains in spite of the achievement gap. After-school activities have been shown to bring many positive outcomes for students. That said, there is much that we do not yet know …

Can We Use Grammar To Support Students’ Communication Skills?, Rebecca Blaxell

eCULTURE

Communication skills consistently rank as one of the skills most desired by employers and is included in the graduate attributes at ECU. This paper looks to examine why sound grammatical skills are considered important and what role it plays in the development of communication skills. It looks at the role of grammar in the tertiary classroom and at possible ways that university educators can help support students’ understanding of the grammatical structures needed in the text types that are most closely associated with the workforce. Using Halliday’s interpretation of register, grammar can be considered in terms of the function needed …

The Development Of A Student Focused Model For Transition To University, Lynne Cohen, Catherine Ferguson, Bronwyn Harman, Mary Boyce, Anne Harris, Megan Le Clus

eCULTURE

The transition to university is a well recognised challenge, especially for non-traditional students. This paper presents a student-focused model for the transition to university, developed through an extensive literature review, discussions with a range of professionals nationally and internationally, and first year teaching practice. The model was applied to the development of a range of strategies to be implemented at one institution. The use of the model may facilitate the development of a university-wide approach to the issues of student transition to university and the first year in higher education experience. The model will allow a balanced approach to be …

Creating Cultural Empathy And Challenging Attitudes Through Indigenous Narrative Project, Toni Wain, Moira Sim, Colleen Hayward, Juli Coffin, Donna Mak, Cobie Rudd

eCULTURE

The gap in life expectancy between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians is too large to ignore. This has been attributed to social and economic disadvantage, access to health care and lack of cultural appropriateness of health services and providers. Creating culturally secure healthcare requires that we explore new ways for health professionals to relate to Aboriginal people. This article describes the development, implementation and early results from the Creating cultural empathy and challenging attitudes though Indigenous narrative project. The purpose of the project is to collect and trial narrative resources to engage students in stories of Indigenous people’s perceptions and experience …

Engaging Students In Peer Review: Feedback As Learning, Catherine Moore, Susan Teather

eCULTURE

There is a growing interest in developing the capabilities of learners to evaluate and improve their own work, as well as that of others (Boud & Falchikov, 2006; Oliver, 2011). At ECU our new undergraduate curriculum framework titled Curriculum 2012: Enabling the learning journey promotes the active engagement of students in assessment for learning. In order to successfully direct their own learning beyond university, students need to be able to identify the standard of performance to which they should aspire as a result of that learning, accurately locate where they are in relation to the standard, and then develop pathways …

Workplace Integrated Learning, Environmental Volunteering Or Service Learning?, Rowena H. Scott, Eddie Van Etten

eCULTURE

This discussion paper introduces the concept and practice of environmental volunteering as part of the process of Workplace Integrated Learning (WIL) at Edith Cowan University. As well as introducing the theoretical background and definitions of both volunteering and WIL, this paper describes examples from Natural Sciences domain of students doing environmental voluntary work with community groups as a practicum which is a core unit within their course. Literature suggests that these examples should neither be defined as volunteering nor WIL so their definitions and classifications are debated. Review of these examples in light of the literature suggests the conclusion that …

Using The Delphi Technique To Identify Components Of A Tertiary Strategic Hrm Curriculum, Helen Sitlington, Alan Coetzer

eCULTURE

This study sought to identify key knowledge, skills and attitudes required of SHRM graduates as identified by experts in the academic and practitioner fields. The Delphi technique was selected as it has been used effectively in other contexts to develop consensus amongst experts for a range of purposes, including curriculum design. Explanation of this technique, the rationale for its use and reflections on its use in curriculum design by both participants and researchers is provided.

Embedding Innovative Assessment Practices To Develop Critical Appraisal Skills In A Third Year Social Science Unit, Susan Teather, Catherine Moore

eCULTURE

There is a growing imperative in tertiary education (nationally and internationally) to enable lifelong learning as a graduate outcome (Bologna Process, 2010: Boud & Falchikov, 2006; Oliver, 2011). At ECU our new undergraduate curriculum framework titled Curriculum 2012: enabling the learning journey promotes lifelong learning and assessment for learning. Lifelong learning implies developing both the capacity to learn and the ability to direct learning. In order to successfully direct their own learning beyond university students need to be able to identify the standard of performance to which they should aspire as a result of that learning, accurately locate where they …

Improving Assessment Outcomes Through The Application Of Innovative Digital Technologies, Julia Wren, Alistair Campbell, John Heyworth, Christine Lovering

eCULTURE

Assessing students’ live performances is challenging because the marker needs to make complex judgements often very quickly while at the same time recording information and viewing the performance. The challenge increases when multiple markers are involved and moderation of marks is required. It can be difficult to maintain sound assessment principles, such as fairness and validity, and to offer students quality and timely feedback. This paper describes a two phase, qualitative, action research project which trialled the use of an innovative, digital technology-supported assessment tool designed to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of assessment and moderation of live performances. The …

The Synchronised Development Of Academic And Employability Skills And Attributes At University, Rebecca Blaxell, Catherine Moore

eCULTURE

In a competitive, culturally diverse and increasingly internationalised workplace students can no longer assume that possession of a tertiary degree will naturally lead to employment. There has been a shift in the mindset of employers, who now seek to employ graduates with “employability” skills and attributes in addition to traditional expertise within their discipline (DEST, 2002). At first glance this appears to have placed an additional burden on universities in preparing students to be active citizens and engaged leaders, both within their chosen field and broader society. This paper discusses the project we embarked upon to compare the skills and …

Bringing Online Peer Review Into Blended Teaching, Susan White

Blended Learning in the Liberal Arts Conference

Motivated by my experience as a student in a MOOC, I have incorporated online peer review of writing assignments into my advanced undergraduate biochemistry courses. Each student submits her review of a course reading or report online, then evaluates work submitted by two or three of her classmates based on a rubric I provide. As peer reviewers, students anonymously assign low-stakes grades and receive credit for their reviews, but they also get an opportunity to write for each other and read their classmate's responses to course topics. Moodle’s Workshop activity was used to manage the submission and review process. I …

Using Blended Learning To Take Advantage Of Learning Science Research, Jennifer Spohrer

Blended Learning in the Liberal Arts Conference

Why does blended learning work? Some observers have suggested that students simply spend more time with the material in a blended course, but evidence from studies of blended courses is mixed. Learning science research suggests that how learners study also matters, and a blended learning approaches incorporate many tactics shown to be effective, such as formative assessment, repetition at intervals, and metacognitive prompting.

Fostering Student Engagement In An Upper-Level, Online Seminar On The History Of Sexuality: Lessons Learned About Pedagogy And Course Design To Deepen Students’ Learning, Kristine Rabberman

Blended Learning in the Liberal Arts Conference

GSWS 422 “History of Sexuality” has been offered for four years in the online summer program at the University of Pennsylvania. The instructor leads advanced undergraduate and graduate students through a highly interactive seminar class in which they learn how to analyze critically works in the history of sexuality, exploring sexual identities, roles and norms from Ancient Greece and Rome, to the United States in the 21^st century. Students are required to demonstrate their critical engagement and understanding of central debates and themes, methodological challenges, and issues of change versus continuity. One of the instructor’s goals in teaching the …

Keynote: Nglc Blended Learning Study Report And Where Do We Go From Here?, Kimberly Cassidy, Jennifer Spohrer

Blended Learning in the Liberal Arts Conference

Drs. Cassidy and Spohrer will give an update on the Next Generation Learning Challenges Wave I grant-funded study of blended learning, including an overview of preliminary findings from courses taught at our partner colleges over the 2012-2013 academic year. We will also present and discuss possible next steps for 2013-2014.

Definitions And Uses: Case Study Of Teachers Implementing Project-Based Learning, Suha R. Tamim, Michael M. Grant

Interdisciplinary Journal of Problem-Based Learning

The purpose of this descriptive study was to explore inservice teachers’ definitions of project based learning (PjBL) and their accounts on the meaning of their PjBL implementations. A purposive sample of six teachers from grades four through twelve in public and private schools participated. Three themes evolved from inductive analysis: (1) teachers define PjBL through its perceived advantages on learning, (2) teachers vary in their use of PjBL over the continuum of the learning process, and (3) teachers adopt student-centered approaches in PjBL. Interpretations and implications of the findings are also presented.

Etymology + Animation = Etymation : The History Of Spelling Via Animations, Gladys Aponte

Graduate Student Independent Studies

Etymation is a series of 4-7 minute long animated cartoons. The seven cartoons provide a child-friendly overview of the history of American English spelling. Each cartoon explains one reason American English spelling often seems so irrational. The Etymation cartoons and accompanying activities are designed to supplement an investigative spelling curriculum. The rationale discusses the importance of such an investigative spelling curriculum, and outlines how Etymation is aligned to the Common Core State Standards.

Close Examinations Of Texts By Online Learning Communities Through The Final Word Protocol, Matthew Borgmeyer

Graduate Student Independent Studies

This study documents a potential approach to rich discussions around complex texts by using a combination of protocols and synchronous technologies. The shortcomings of both online text discussion technologies and protocols can be overcome by using best practices from both approaches. Includes a series of documents, guidelines, and instructional screencasts that will illustrate the implementation of the Final Word protocol using the technologies of Google Docs and the iPad app Subtext. Finally, the study discusses potential applications of this approach for leadership contexts both in K-12 education and higher education.

Steady Bodies Active Minds : A Resource For Using Yoga And Mindfulness In The Classroom, Clare Murchison

Graduate Student Independent Studies

This paper seeks to provide a resource for teachers to use the practices of yoga and mindfulness effectively in their elementary classrooms.

Putting The Classroom To Work--A Classroom Blueprint : How Does A Classroom Environment Influence Teaching Styles And A Teacher's Well Being?, Maria L. Freda

Graduate Student Independent Studies

This empirical study is written to call attention to and define the role of the classroom environment as an influential teaching tool. Through observation, interviews, and extensive reference resources, this compilation of work will discuss and assess how the arrangement of a classroom, its furnishings, and its aesthetic climate can influence a teacher's sensibilities, well being, motivation, and teaching style. The result of this research is intended to lead to the development of the classeum blueprint, a workshop series and guide, created for educators kindergarten through fourth grade.

Promoting Stem Literacy In 21st Century Education, Emily V. Martin

Honors College Theses

This research paper focuses on the importance of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) Literacy in American Education. Specifically, the research paper focuses on different strategies that can be used to incorporate literacy into the science and math classrooms. There are five different strategies presented for each content area and they were all suggested by a variety of Educational Journals. Along with literacy strategies, there is another part of the research paper that focuses on the importance of innovative experiences in the science and math classrooms that incorporate principles of engineering and technology. The importance of this is not only to …