Language and Literacy Education Commons^™

Supporting Teachers' Use Of Nonfiction Text In The Primary Grades Classroom: One Practical Strategy, Renee Rice Moran

ETSU Faculty Works

The purpose of this article is to argue for the benefits of using nonfiction text in the primary grades classroom. Readers are provided with a brief theoretical framework which outlines how nonfiction may increase achieve,emt, motivation, and interest for young students. Additionally, practical strategies are included for classroom teachers which work to frontload and support students in the act of processing nonfiction text as well as increase teachers' comfort level with the implementation of a nonfiction unit of study.

Examining Pre-Service Teachers' Instructional Strategies For Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge Via Video-Conferencing, Hsiu-Jen Cheng, Hong Zhan

Publications

This action research observes instructional strategies and appropriateness of the strategies that pre-service teachers have applied during their training based on the Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK) training model. Participants include 14 pre-service teachers who were enrolled in a Distance Education training course in Taiwan. During the course, pre-service teachers were trained to develop teaching skills based on the TPACK training model and applied their skills in video-conferencing teaching which involved 14 American students who were learning Mandarin Chinese as a Foreign Language (CFL) in an intermediate level course in the United States. Data were collected via screen recordings of …

Gjr Volume 35 Number 1 Fall 2012, Christine Draper, Lina Soares

The Georgia Journal of Reading Archive

The Georgia Journal of Reading's Fall 2012 issue includes:

Message From the Editors by Lina Soares and Christine Draper (pg.4)

President’s Page by Lynn C. Minor (pg. 5)

Integrating Mathematics and Reading Fluency Instruction in the Primary Grades by Ryan Nivens, Lori Meier, Michael Brikell, and Edward J. Dwyer (pg. 6)

Visual Literacy: A Picture Can Be Worth Ten Thousand Words by Stacy Delacruz (pg. 12)

Using Interactive Whiteboards to Enhance the Writing Process by Laura Ely and Jerilou Moore (pg. 18)

Teacher Influence on Book Selection of Third Grade Students by Shelia Delony and Katie Hathorn (pg. 24)

Schema …

Parental Perceptions Of A Summer Esl Parent Institute: A Retrospective Case Study, John Scott Cascone

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

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Breaking The Waves: Deconstructing Class/Gender And Sociocultural Stereotypes Through A Spanish Readings Course On Human Rights With Service Learning Component, Karina Elizabeth Vázquez

Latin American, Latino and Iberian Studies Faculty Publications

As the film directors Bertrand Tavernier and Laurent Cantet demonstrate in their respective films It All Starts Today (1999) and Entre Les Murs (2008), schools still reproduce social inequality and cultural stereotypes. One of the most important challenges teachers and professors confront as members of civil society, particularly in moments of social crisis or instability, is to promote students' critical thinking in relation to individual and collective rights. A deep understanding of the concepts and history of human rights infuses the foreign language classroom with a sense of cooperation and dignity that will promote the deconstructing of social and cultural …

Essay Writing Instructional Lexicon And Semantic Confusion, Amir Kalan

English Faculty Publications

“Introduction,” “body,” and “conclusion” are the most accessible words in the instructional lexicon for ESL writing teachers when they want to describe the structure of a typical five-paragraph persuasive or argumentative essay or its shorter variations for standardized tests such as TOEFL and IELTS. They are frequently employed to refer to the three tiers of the hamburger essay in textbooks, on classroom boards, and in YouTube tutorials.

Not surprisingly, English learners also might give you the same words if asked what the main components of an essay are. Like ESL teachers, students usually use the same terms or their equivalents …

Tracking The Basic Writer, Timothy Donohue

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Since the 1970s, composition teachers and theorists have been advocating the term “basic writer” to give a space and voice to underprepared students entering college by providing them with basic skills remediation. Despite the various pedagogical approaches to these classes that have been established and put into practice over the years, there is still large disagreement among educators on how to best prepare these students for entrance into the mainstream college environment.

This study begins by examining the history of the basic writing movement, acknowledging key figures and the salient ideas of their works. A broad overview is given to …

Signals The Interplay Between Literacy, Gender, And Semiotics, Patricia Parker

HIM 1990-2015

The purpose of this study is to examine adult literacy beyond its constraints as a social problem and instead consider the implications of illiteracy as a particular form of lived experience, analogous to women's oppression at large. Through a complex system of meaning making, the knowledge accrued by illiterate adults is qualitatively different, and examining these differences in terms of their correlation to coping mechanisms developed in the face of social alienation and diminished professional prospects yields a greater understanding of class privilege and how nontraditional learners fit into a larger social structure. From the perspective of academic feminism, adult …

Negotiating Literature Discussions In Multiple Contexts: Talking About Books With Latinas In Elementary School, Joanna L. Waggoner-Norquest

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

This study works to answer the primary research questions: How do Latina elementary school students negotiate literature discussions in both online and face-to-face contexts? In addition, it seeks to answer the subquestions: How does the chosen medium, face-to-face or online discussions, influence these discussions? How do students move between discourse/identities during these discussions? Through the use of mapping conversational turns and broad application of discourse analysis, based on the work of James Paul Gee, this study shows the ways Latina students negotiate in-person literature discussions largely by recreating traditional school-based power structures and blending home and school Discourses. It shows …

Reading Reform And The Role Of Policy, Practice And Instructional Leadership On Reading Achievement: A Case Study Of Grissom Elementary School, Faith Andrea Morrison

Graduate Student Dissertations, Theses, Capstones, and Portfolios

The purpose of this study was to explore whether William Deming's 8 Step Model would increase reading achievement in 3rd grade students. The study investigated how well the process based plan-do-check-act model when used as a treatment with fidelity, coupled with the principal as instructional leader would result in success in the age of federal accountability.

A qualitative case study methodology was adopted for the study. A school in northwest Indiana was selected and data were collected from interviews, field observations, focus group interviews, a principal questionnaire, and data analysis of student test scores. The focus of the school was …

Promoting Blogging To Improve Interpersonal And Presentational Writing Skills While Increasing Cultural Competency In An English Language Learning Setting, Terese Cox

Theses and Dissertations

Instructors of English Language Learners (ELLs) often focus on writing as one of the primary skills acquired in the university second language classroom. This thesis examines the role of blogging in improving interpersonal and presentational writing while also increasing students' cultural competency. It describes how to create and use a web source to promote blogging in the classroom. A classroom web source to accompany Interchange 3 as well as sixteen lessons with accompanying materials and rubrics comprise a substantial portion of this thesis to practically show how blogging might be incorporated into an ESL classroom. Each lesson enforces and highlights …

The History Of Foreign Language Pedagogy: From Methodology To Psychology, Alyssa Pilli '12

Honor Scholar Theses

This thesis investigates the history of studies performed regarding foreign language pedagogy in an attempt to investigate how well the information gained from these studies influences the teaching practices that are in use. The first half looks at earlier studies which focused on the specific teaching methods employed in the language classroom. While the Immersion method is the only method displaying significant benefits in comparison to the others, this method is rarely used in the public school domain for political reasons such as funding and alternate agendas. With inconclusive evidence favoring any other method, research switched focus to the individual …

Musical Linguistics: How Music And Artistic Creativity When Delivered As A Linguistic Practice, Help Students Master Academic Skills In English Language Arts, Cynthyny Ann Lebo

Theses Digitization Project

This Masters project consists of two elements: 1) an integrated after-school program to improve student English language reading and academic outcomes for third graders' vocabulary development by incorporating music, artistic creativity and linguistics; 2) a pilot sample curriculum that demonstrates the approach for building student comprehension through musical theater and Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) content experiences. Called "Water Buddy", this is an after-school program uses singing, dancing, writing, and play to build reading and vocabulary skills. The goal is to improve learner academic outcomes by mastering the elemental building blocks of words, letters, symbols by making memorable the …

The Effects Of Digital Technology On Basic Writing, Leslie Denise Norris

English Theses & Dissertations

At this study's research site—a small, Virginia community college—faculty, staff and students use digital technology to share information daily, which could cause a problem for some students: students may need digital literacy instruction before the college requires those courses. Another potential problem is that scholars (Stephens, Houser, and Cowan) indicate that some instructors across the academy treat students negatively if students do not demonstrate digital, rhetorical dexterity when communicating—particular digital skills that some students lack.

For this study, I surveyed basic writing (BW) instructors and students at the research site to learn more about their digital experiences. The surveys yielded …

Medical Spanish For U.S. Medical Students: A Pilot Case Study, Lauren Davidson, Sheri Spaine Long

Dimensions

In an effort to expand the teaching of medical Spanish to medical students, a one-week pilot course was developed and implemented at The University of Alabama School of Medicine (UASOM) in January 2010. Objectives included offering a refresher course in Spanish for medical students before third-year clerkships and providing a model for medical schools interested in developing medical Spanish courses. The pilot course included the teaching of Spanish language and related cultural information to students at varying levels of Spanish proficiency by an experienced Spanish for Specific Purposes (SSP) instructor. Students completed an evaluation to suggest future directions for the …

From Orality To Literacy: A Curricular Model For Intensive Second-Year Collegiate Language Instruction, Per Urlaub, Jan Uelzmann

Dimensions

This article documents a curriculum reform of the second-year German program at the Department of Germanic Studies at the University of Texas at Austin. This curricular reform had two goals: (1) compressing two semesters of intermediate-level language instruction into a single semester; (2) incorporating a strategy-based approach to literary reading in the second language. The article will first compare the previous curriculum and then introduce a conceptual framework for the reform process. This framework is based on three distinct pedagogical principles that the article will outline. Further, the article will describe the planning and implementation stages of the reform and …

World Languages: Learners Wanted

Dimensions

SCOLT Dimensions Volume 47

Perspectives On Teaching And Learning English Literacy In China., Cynthia B. Leung, Jiening Ruan

Faculty Books

This is one of two volumes by the same editors that explore historical, philosophical, and cultural perspectives on literacy in China. This volume focuses on Chinese literacy, while the other volume is on English literacy. Since the founding of the People’s Republic of China, the country has witnessed a dramatic increase in its literacy rate, but not without challenges. The essays in this volume provide a comprehensive, cross-disciplinary look at changes in Chinese literacy education from ancient times to the modern day. Together, the essays address a wide array of topics, including early Chinese literacy development, children’s literature, foreign translated …

Fay B. Kaigler Children's Book Festival, Karen Rowell, The University Of Southern Mississippi, The University Of Southern Mississippi's School Of Library And Information Science

Fay B. Kaigler Children's Book Festival Programs

The program for the forty-fifth annual Fay B. Kaigler Children's Book Festival held on the campus of The University of Southern Mississippi in Hattiesburg, Mississippi in 2012.

How People Learn English As Second Language, Aldemaro Romero Jr.

Publications and Research

No abstract provided.

Mapping Writing Development In Young Bilingual Learners, Ana M. Hernández, Ed.D., Magaly Lavadenz, Ph.D.

Practitioner Journal Articles

A growing interest in Two-Way Bilingual Immersion (TWBI) programs has led to increased attention to bilingualism, biliteracy, and biculturalism. This article describes the writing development in Spanish and English for 49 kindergarten students in a 50/50 Two-Way Bilingual Immersion program. Over the course of an academic year, the authors collected writing samples to analyze evidence of cross-linguistic resource sharing using a grounded theoretical approach to compare and contrast writing samples to determine patterns of cross-linguistic resource sharing in English and Spanish. The authors identified four patterns: phonological, syntactic, lexical, and metalinguistic awareness. Findings indicated that emergent writers applied similar strategies …

Beatrice The Butterfly Visits The New York Public Library, Gail Goldspiel

Graduate Student Independent Studies

This original work of children's literature tells the story of Beatrice, a young butterfly who explores the 42nd Street New York Public Library with a class. Intended for children in grades K-3, this book serves as a first introduction to the library and can be read by parents, teachers, and librarians.

Preventing Long-Term English Learners: Results From A Project-Based Differentiated Eld Intervention Program, Magaly Lavadenz, Ph.D., Elvira G. Armas, Ed.D., Rosalinda Barajas

Practitioner Journal Articles

In this article the authors describe efforts taken by a small southern California school district to develop and implement an innovative, research-based English Language Development program to address a growing concern over long-term English Learners (LTELs) in their district. With support from the Weingart Foundation this afterschool program served 3^rd and 7^th grade LTELs between 2008–2011 to accelerate language and literacy acquisition and prevent prolonged EL status. Program evaluation results indicated that the intervention was associated with improved English language proficiency as measured by the California English Language Development Test. Results also showed a heightened awareness of effective …

Career Development And Professional Attrition Of Novice Esl Teachers Of Adults, Farahnaz Faez, Antonella Valeo

Education Publications

Research and development in language teacher education and, more recently, teacher accreditation has had enormous impact on the professional lives of ESL teachers in Canada. There has been less interest, however, in examining the career development and employment experiences of accredited ESL teachers as they transition from TESL programs to ESL classrooms. In this article, we report on a study examining this issue for ESL teachers of adults in Ontario, in which 147 ESL teachers responded to a survey and a select group participated in follow-up interviews. The data were collected for a broader study investigating the link between teacher …

Exploring The Educational Involvement Of Parents Of English Learners, Elizabeth M. Vera, M Susman Israel, Laura Coyle, J Cross, Laura Knight-Lynn, I Moallem, G Bartucci, N Goldberger

Center for Research Quality Publications

The purpose of the current investigation was to examine the relationships among a range of specific barriers and facilitators of parent involvement and a variety of types of school involvement within a diverse group of immigrant parents of English Learners (ELs) in four elementary school districts. In-home types of educational involvement such as monitoring homework and asking children about their school day were the most commonly reported behaviors, and utilizing community resources was found to be the least common type of parental involvement. Involvement type was predicted by parental demographic factors such as comfort with English language, educational background, and …

Seven Strategies For Teaching The Novel, James Young

The Utah English Journal

Most elementary and secondary teachers have independent reading programs that allow students to choose novels based on their interest and reading levels. After reading the novel on their own at home, students are either given short comprehension tests or asked to write reports to give them credit for the work they have completed. Sometimes, however, teachers want all of the students in a class to experience the same novel together. He or she might want to teach the class a reading technique associated with a novel, like how to locate the conflict in a story or how to examine the …

Today's Kids Need The Classics Too, Lorraine Wallace

The Utah English Journal

It is no secret that 21st Century adolescents are reading less than their parents and grandparents did. Because modern technology has tapped into teens’ craving for color, action, and sound, books have a hard time competing with the X-box and the Wii. The “gotta have it quick and easy” attitude of today’s teens and young adults seems to make reading anything of substance, involving depth of thought or processing time, a pastime gone the way of wringer washers and push mowers.

So how do secondary English teachers who want their students to read tap into the insatiable appetite teens have …

Experiencing The Cuwp Summer Institute, Liz Knight

The Utah English Journal

The Central Utah Writing Project is part of the network of over 200 National Writing Project sites. It was established in 2008 and serves the school districts of central Utah; every summer the CUWP sponsors a 3-4 week institute that brings together teachers from a variety of disciplines to study the art of teaching writing. This past summer I spent three weeks at the Central Utah Writing Project’s Summer Institute. I was there as the graduate assistant to the administrators, part-participant and part-observer. I was mid-way through the MFA program in Creative Writing at Brigham Young University, and had been …

Living Through Literature: The Benefits Of Small Learning Communities And Cross-Content Collaboration, Dawan Coombs, Brian Preece

The Utah English Journal

"Coombs, what are you doing here?” Matt asked as he walked into the room, geared up for history class with Mr. Preece. “I’m here for your class,” I replied with a smile. I knew where this was going; we’d had conversations similar to this before. “But this is history,” he retorted. “We don’t have your English class ‘til next period. You and Mr. Preece don’t even seem like you’d be friends.” Mr. Preece and I raised our eyebrows at Matt’s comment, but the sentiments he expressed were similar to those we had heard before. As this and other exchanges like …

Using Picture Books In The Secondary Classroom, Kaye Brockbank

The Utah English Journal

One of my favorite picture books is Stand Tall Molly Lou Mellon by Patty Lovell. It is a fantastic picture book about, among other things, following the advice of those we admire. The story also deals with topics such as being who you are despite what others think of you and standing up to bullies. Molly Lou’s story is perfect for introducing or supporting classroom discussions on these topics. The story is quick and to the point, and, despite what teen students might say, they really do enjoy having a story read to them. Picture books are a fun, quick …