Elementary Education Commons^™

Stem Integration: Math, Meet Biology!, Lindsey Herlehy, Karen Togliatti

Publications & Research

Join us for three hands-on, inquiry-based activities integrating mathematical and scientific thinking. First, explore patterns in the powers of ten and use this information to sort a set of images and design a scale model of an E. coli's DNA. Then, simulate a colorful biotechnology application using new tools and laboratory skills. Art, science, and math intersect in an activity merging coordinate geometry, symmetry, and biotechnology skills. NGSS and CCSS practice standards will be demonstrated.

A Review Of Lead Pd Writing In The Content Areas: Measures Of Teacher Self-Efficacy And Student Performance, Andrea Paige Greene

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Data from recent college and career readiness measures indicate an alarming number of students are beginning college courses unequipped with the necessary writing skills to meet the demands of these courses. This, in addition to the Common Core State Standards, leave many teachers feeling underprepared to effectively teach writing. The current study sought to evaluate the effectiveness of LEAD PD: Writing in the Content Areas, a writing professional development initiative for teachers grounded in the writing standards and best practices of writing instruction. In partnership with a university of higher education, teachers from a local middle school were trained to …

Gender Socialization In Chinese Schools: Teachers, Children And Gender Roles, Connor Swan

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

As the first major social environment most children will encounter outside the family, school plays a pivotal role in the socialization of gender roles for young children. The aim of this research is to examine how young children learn and practice gender roles in Chinese school environments. In what ways do teachers and adults communicate messages about gender to children, and how do children receive and internalize these messages? What do teachers consciously intend to teach children about gender, and what do they unconsciously teach through their actions? Over the course of one month, I attended classes and observed teacher-student …

The Effect Of A Growth Mindset On Student Achievement Among Students With A Disability, Kristin Line Froedge

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate to what extent the mindset of students with disabilities relates to their Student Growth Percentile (SGP) on the K-PREP in both reading and math. In addition to exploring the influence of student mindset on academic growth, the study also examined if a correlation exists between teacher mindsets and mindsets of their students. This quantitative study utilized 2015 K-PREP assessment data from the Kentucky Department of Education and a mindset survey developed by the researcher. Participants for this study included 145 middle school students with disabilities and 46 middle school teachers from six …

Computer Science Unit, Megan Bouchard

Honors Senior Capstone Projects

A collection of ten computer science lesson plans, aligned with Massachusetts Digital Literacy and Computer Science Standards, developed for an after school program.

Kindness In The Classroom, Ashley Tomich

Honors Senior Capstone Projects

This study investigates the impact direct and explicit teaching has on a student’s level of empathy in a third grade classroom using the Kindness in the Classroom curriculum .

Advocating For The Need Of A College And Career Readiness Preparation Accountablity Policy, Mellodie Brown

Dissertations

This proposed policy advocates for Chicago Public Schools (CPS) to adopt a College and Career Readiness Preparation Accountability Policy wherein CPS sets district-wide criteria and structures for student college and career readiness at every grade level and ensures that resources and supportive services are available for its most at-risk students in underperforming schools. Also, it is important that CPS recognize the limited capacity of its teachers to transition students toward meeting Common Core State Standards. This can be addressed through professional development aligned to a proposed matrix for college and career readiness for all students. Supplemental funds are needed to …

Differentiated Instruction For All Students In English Language Arts, Philip M. Zola

Education Masters

Teachers are challenged to meet the needs of every student in their classroom and deliver instruction that gives students the opportunity to learn at their highest potential. In any given classroom, there are “at risk students,” “grade level students,” and “accelerated students” that need to have their specific learning needs met. Specifically in English Language Arts, teachers have a wide spectrum of abilities they need to accommodate for. All three levels of learners should be pushed to their fullest potential and challenged equally. By administering a survey to several schools in a suburban Rochester, New York community – data was …

Educating The Whole Child: Using Positive Adult Relationships To Develop Noncognitive Skills In Students Facing Adversity, Virginia A. Saurine

Honors Theses

Under-resourced children often experience multiple stressors in their everyday lives that can negatively impact their performance in schools. However, numerous research studies have shown that the most significant protective factor for under-resourced children is a caring, adult relationship. This study focuses on what needs to happen in the teacher-student relationship in order for the teacher to be that protective relationship. Building the teacher-student relationship aids all children, not just under-resourced children, in developing the academic, social and emotional skills necessary to be successful in the classroom. Development and presence of academic perseverance and an academic mindset of students are the …

Current Perspectives On Inclusive Education In The Czech Republic, Moncia B. Langer

Student Publications

This paper examines the academic literature describing the development of inclusive education programming within the Czech Republic after the Velvet Revolution. Interviews were conducted with special education professionals, who are researching potential benefits of inclusive education. Additionally, observations from an inclusive third grade classroom give further insight into how an inclusive classroom works. Despite some resistance, the Czech Republic is moving in the direction of inclusive education across the country.

The Supreme Court And Education Law, Charles J. Russo

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

Compiling a “top 10” list of anything— including Supreme Court cases and justices’ quotes—can be fraught with differences of opinion. Yet discussions about those differences can be useful learning activities, because they can lead to conversations about the underlying legal issues in schools. With that caveat in mind, this column offers key quotes from major Supreme Court cases that played major, even transformational, roles in shaping the landscape of U.S. K–12 education. The quotes are accompanied by brief summaries of why the cases are significant. With the exception of Brown v. Board of Education, Topeka, Kansas (1954), the most important …

An Analysis Of Science Instruction And Environmental Education In Virginia And Oklahoma, Megan Wing

Environmental Studies Senior Seminar Projects

In order to understand how science instruction, and specifically instruction targeting environmental and climate change science, in K-5 classrooms can help form students into responsible and conscientious global citizens, I looked specifically at science education in K-5 curriculum. I explored how the Virginia Standards of Learning (SOLs) currently include environmental education and climate change education and how the SOLs provide the potential for future climate change education. For comparison, and to understand how states other than Virginia value environmental science education in the elementary grades, I considered the current Oklahoma Academic Standards (OASs) for K-5 students. In this paper, I …

Impact Of Mindset Interventions During Morning Meeting On Student Motivation And Classroom Community, Megan Schoaf

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

The(research(question(addressed(is what impact do mindset interventions during Morning Meeting have on students’ motivation and building community in a kindergarten classroom? It studies the work of Carol Dweck and other researchers who have theorized that the human mindset can play a pivotal role in motivation to learn and persevere past challenges. It also examines the effects of teaching about the brain and how the brain can grow and change with effort and persistence. The author used a qualitative method of study using interviews, anecdotal notes, and classroom observations to obtain perspective of preliminary mindsets and mindsets at the end of the …

Cultural Institutions As Partners In Initial Elementary Science Teacher Preparation, Lara Smetana, Daniel Birmingham, Heidi Rouleau, Jenna Carlson, Shannon Phillips

Education: School of Education Faculty Publications and Other Works

Despite an increased recognition of the role that ‘informal’ learning spaces (e.g. museums, aquariums, other cultural institutions) have in children’s science education (NRC, 2015), there remains a gap between the goals and values of ‘informal’ and ‘formal’ (i.e. school-based) learning sectors. Moreover, the potential for informal spaces and institutions to also play a role in initial teacher preparation is only beginning to be realized. Here, we present our Science Teacher Learning Ecosystem model and explain how it frames the design of our elementary science teacher education coursework. We then use this framework to describe learning experiences that are collaboratively planned …

Engaging Rural Students In A Community Project, Jennie B. Cottrell

Scholars Week

eaching art that is relevant to the students and the area one finds themselves working in can sometimes prove to be a challenge. Students and their interests in subject matter can vary depending upon their surroundings. I will share ways teachers can cater instruction towards rural students. Sometimes students in rural areas are in need of a better understanding of art and the importance it holds within the world today. Art is a cultural experience. It is an eye opener to social situations and has functions in fashion, dance and even food. I will conclude with sharing a unit plan, …

Preference Organization, Danielle M. Pillet-Shore

Communication

Conversation analytic research on “preference organization” investigates recorded episodes of naturally occurring social interaction to elucidate how people systematically design their actions to either support or undermine social solidarity. This line of work examines public forms of conduct that are highly generalized and institutionalized, not the private desires, subjective feelings or psychological preferences of individuals. This article provides a detailed and accessible overview of classic and contemporary conversation analytic findings about preference, which collectively demonstrate that human interaction is organized to favor actions that promote social affiliation (through face-preservation) at the expense of conflict (resulting from face-threat). While other overviews …

A Study Of The Relationship Between Oral Language And Sight Word Acquisition In First-Grade Students, Becky L. Goetzinger

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Capstones

This study examines the relationship between socioeconomic status, oral language, graphophonemic knowledge, and sight word acquisition in first-grade students. Previous research has shown that a relationship exists between socioeconomic status and oral language as well as between oral language and reading. The present study built on the research by extending these relationships to include high-frequency sight words, the words frequently targeted in early reading instruction. Across their first-grade year, 46 students were assessed on measures of receptive oral language, graphophonemic knowledge, and sight word knowledge. Students made significant progress on all measures indicating that first grade was a time of …

The Empathy Project: The Importance Of Transitional Bilingual Education Programs, Angela Raimo

Community of Scholars Day—Posters

The audience will learn about the benefit of transitional bilingual education programs as well as the curriculum taught to my first and second grade students. They will also learn the strategies I have implemented to instill empathy and hold expectations for students who are struggling academically and socioeconomically. There will be a large amount of research on transitional bilingual education programs, multicultural teaching practices, multicultural students, and teaching empathy in an elementary school classroom.

The Lived Experiences Of Leading Edge Certified Elementary School Teachers Who Use Instructional Technology To Foster Critical Thinking, Collaboration, Creativity, And Communication In Their Classrooms: A Phenomenological Study, Natalie A. Ruddell

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this phenomenological study was to describe the perceptions of current and former Leading Edge Certified (LEC) elementary school teachers regarding instructional technology practices that facilitate students’ development of critical thinking, collaboration, communication, and creativity (4Cs) in one-to-one computer classrooms in Riverside County, California.

Methodology: This qualitative study utilized a phenomenological design. The primary source of data collection was a standardized, open-ended interview aligned to the research questions of 12 participants. This study employed inductive analysis to analyze the rich data. Using inductive analysis, the data were coded and themes were identified that aligned to the research …

How Do Student Responses Develop In Second Grade Reading Conferences, Lindsey Ervin

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this investigation was to investigate and track the development of student responses during individual reading conferences in second grade. Data was kept over a two-week period and tracked through individual student reading conferences, student jots during reading, reading logs and anecdotal notes. Throughout the study, the student responses developed through the use of question stems and prompts. Through the use of self-selected text and holding student accountable for the reading, the students remained engaged. The structure of the conference helped to build on students' strengths and provide a teaching point in order for the students to practice …

Why Is Mulvaney Opposed To Feeding Poor Kids At School?, Dave Powell

Education Faculty Publications

Folks, you've got to get a load of this guy Mick Mulvaney. Just looking at his name conjures images of a character from a gangster novel set during Prohibition, but he's actually the Trump White House's director of the Office of Management and Budget. That means he's the hatchet man—the guy responsible for making sure everything Trump wants to cut gets cut. And it means he's a real human, too. Allegedly.

Case in point: Mulvaney has been producing amazing sound bites lately to explain the contents of Trump's proposed federal budget. [excerpt]

Some Things You Can Do To Support Public Education Now, Dave Powell

Education Faculty Publications

Yesterday a group of students here at Gettysburg College, where I teach, organized a Solidarity Rally. It consisted largely of teach-ins designed to start conversations, and hopefully it will the first of many events that bring people together to think more carefully about how we should respond to things going on outside of our college and town. [excerpt]

Elementary Education Goat Video: "I Goat This!", Laurie M. Sisler

Agricultural Education and Communication

The purpose of this project was to create an interactive educational video to expand the agricultural knowledge of children in third through fifth grade. The video features goats in effort to improve the next generation’s enthusiasm about agriculture. Consumer agricultural literacy has declined due to most people living at a distance from the farm. Specific objectives were to include interesting information about the terminology used and the tendencies of goats.

The process involved researching this information, contacting the actor, professors, and goat herder, filming the goats multiple times for different animal tendencies, and editing the final video. The video turned …

Media Coverage On Socioeconomically Disadvantaged Students Of California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo And Its Surrounding Community, Melissa Eraclea Nuñez

Journalism

The following study focused on media coverage of the socioeconomically disadvantaged student population at Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo, CA and its immediate surrounding community. Specifically, this study pointed out the gaps in the existing coverage and it looked for ways to fill in those gaps. In additional to filling the gaps, the study emphasized the agenda-setting theory, to bring more awareness and understanding of the struggles and existence of the mentioned student demographic in a city most commonly known as an affluent and not so diverse area of California. To bring this awareness and understanding, four interviews were …

The Impact Of Teachers’ Perceptions Of Students With High Functioning Autism On The Student’S Learning Environment, Corleigh Donati

All Theses And Dissertations

This qualitative research study examines, explores, and describes teachers' perceptions towards high functioning autistic (ASD) students and its impact on the student's learning environment in suburban elementary school inclusion classrooms. Significant themes and subthemes emerged while analyzing the data. The emergent themes categorized were 1) enriching experiences, 2) classroom challenges, 3) preparedness and knowledge, 4) accommodations, and 5) needed supports. Based on the data I concluded that teachers perceived students with ASD to positively impact the learning environment their classroom. Participants reported that ASD students are challenging to work with due to their disruptive behaviors and lower level of functioning, …

Teachers' Experiences With Integrating Play-Based Learning Into Standards-Driven Curriculum: A Phenomenological Study, Mary Nugent

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to describe kindergarten teachers’ experiences with integrating play-based learning into standards-based academic curriculum in a school district in South Carolina. Play–based learning experiences were defined as instances which allow children to engage in active, social learning experiences in classrooms. This study explored the question of how kindergarten teachers describe their experiences with integrating play-based learning experiences in their classrooms, the value of play in their classrooms, their role as the adult during play experiences, and the difficulties that they face in making instructional decisions. The theories guiding this study were Froebel’s early childhood …

Site Joint Sig Symposia: A Collaboration Between The K-12 Online Learning Sig And Distance Learning Sig: How Higher Education And K-12 Online Learning Research Can Impact Each Other, Rick Ferdig, Leanna Archambault, Kerry Rice, Margaret Niess, Trisha Litz, Amy Garrett-Dikkers, Aimee Whiteside, Michael Barbour, David Marcovitz, Antoinette Davis

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Facilitated by Rick Ferdig of Kent State University and editor of JTATE, this Symposia brings together the work of the K-12 Online Learning SIG and the Distance Learning SIG communities and focuses on presentations from scholars in the field whose work has implications for both higher education and K-12 online learning. This Symposia will have nine panelists who will each present their work and then talk specifically about how their work can inform both K-12 and HE. Included in the list of Higher Education-focused panelists are Trisha Litz of Regis University, Maggie Niess of Oregon State University, Antoinette Davis of …

Maybe It's Time To Put Betsy Devos In 'Receive Mode', Dave Powell

Education Faculty Publications

By now you have probably heard about Betsy DeVos' big day out recently. She tried to visit a middle school in Washington but found the front door blocked when she showed up. This led, of course, to the publication of an already-infamous cartoon suggesting that DeVos is actually a modern-day Civil Rights warrior, and to the suggestion that protesters blocking DeVos at the schoolhouse door was the functional (if not moral) equivalent of preventing black children from attending segregated schools in the 1950s and '60s. It's an argument that is morally wrong, historically stupid, and patently offensive. [excerpt]

Betsy Devos Is No Ruby Bridges, Dave Powell

Education Faculty Publications

So maybe you saw this cartoon that was drawn by Glenn McCoy for the Belleville (Ill.) News-Democrat under the headline "Trying to Trash Betsy DeVos." If you didn't, take a look.

In the cartoon, of course, you see little Betsy DeVos walking to school, book in hand, surrounded by faceless men who are there to protect her. It seems to barely be working: there is profanity scrawled on the wall ("NEA"!; "Conservative"!; an anarchy symbol) and what appears to be a really juicy, nasty tomato thrown against the wall. For context, you might also be interested in looking at this …

Eclipsing Expectations: How A Third Grader Set His Own Goals (And Taught Us All How To Listen), Diane L. Berman, David J. Connor

Occasional Paper Series

A description of an illuminating journey through the eyes of a parent, Diane, who wanted a more inclusive experience for her son Benny. For Diane and Benny, this meant becoming meaningful participants not only in Benny’s own classroom community but in the Individualized Education Program (IEP) meetings that determined his educational goals. David uses a DSE framework to analyze and highlight the importance of context, as opposed to focusing on the disability condition, in enacting inclusionary practices. The authors argue for an “adhocratic” model of education that views children, educators, and parents as allies.