Secondary Education Commons^™

Identifying Schools As Caring Communities: Teacher Perceptions About Character Education, Jasmine Johnson

Faculty Works

This study quantified teacher perceptions and their observations of school community interactive attachments. Observed attachments through teacher perceptions classified school communities as caring. Elementary school teachers in the southern United States districts volunteered, in order to determine the significance of school-based taught or learned character education principles in comparison with caring attachments. Data were collected using the Caring Community Profile – II questionnaire, which measures the participants’ attitudes by the extent to which they agree or disagree with a statement. The results clarified the significance of character education programs that identify school communities as caring.

Additionally, the findings answered the …

Home Economics And Food Literacy: An Investigation Into The Factors Influencing The Effective Delivery Of Food Literacy Curricula In Irish Post Primary Schools As Perceived By Key Stakeholders, Aisling Geraghty

Dissertations

In 2018 the new Junior Cycle specification for home economics was introduced. This year also saw the recommendation by the Irish State to make home economics compulsory for all Junior Cycle students. Home economics is a multifaceted, inter disciplinary subject that seeks to empower students with the skills to cultivate reflective, critical decision-making abilities they require to deal with practical perennial problems. Food literacy exists as a key contextual strand to home economics, and to this new Junior Cycle curriculum in particular. This study seeks to identify influences, both positive and negative, that impact on the effective delivery of food …

Think Beyond The Literary Canon: The Potential For Young Adult Literature Within A High School Classroom, Megan Mayle

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

This research project will evaluate and build upon existing research on the use of young adult (YA) literature in high school curriculum. The project will include researching what is currently read in high school classrooms, examining studies on the use of YA literature, and presenting examples and models of implementing three major YA novels into high school curriculum. The three novels that will be looked at in-depth are The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas, the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling, and Mark Haddon's The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. The goal for this research …

Queering The Curriculum: Establishing Equity For Lgbtqia Students And Educators In Michigan, Miranda Findlay

All NMU Master's Theses

This project examines the state of Michigan’s efforts in creating an equitable learning and working environment for LGBTQIA K-12 students and educators, explicitly focusing on 11^th and 12^th grade English Language Arts (ELA) standards. In the first chapter, I evaluate the relationship between queer theory and pedagogy and illuminate the need to implement queer pedagogy in teaching K-12 ELA classes. The following chapter reviews the progressive state of California for its promotion of culturally responsive pedagogy and its inclusion of LGBTQIA topics in its K-12 curriculum. The third chapter analyzes Michigan legislature and policies to highlight gaps that …

Art For All: An Inclusive Curriculum For A Secondary Art Room, Michelle Ann Fuller

Masters Theses

Art classrooms in a secondary public school tend to be a place where students feel inspired to be creative, improve social skills and self-esteem. But what about those who have a learning disability? If the art educator establishes a positive and safe learning environment, all students, including those requiring adaptations can create meaningful work. Do art teachers feel prepared to guide students who require extra attention? How can pre-service teachers enter the profession feeling more qualified instructing these students? This thesis explores the support of inclusion in the high school art room by defining what an ideal collaboration might look …

New Innovation In The Flipped Chemistry Classroom

The Graduate Review

No abstract provided.

Effects Of An Anchored Career-Focused Curriculum On The Knowledge And Attitudes Of At-Risk High School Students, Megan E. Jones

Theses and Dissertations--Early Childhood, Special Education, and Counselor Education

Students with disabilities (SWD) face an unfavorable employment future because many drop out of school at a disproportionate rate. The employment outlook for SWD who graduate from high school is also a concern because current studies show that only about half of them find jobs. In addition, most jobs they do find are entry level and low paying. One predictor of post-secondary success is career awareness. The purpose of this study was first to develop a curriculum especially designed for teaching career awareness of SWD and then to test its effects with a pretest-posttest randomized trial. Results indicated that the …

Teaching The Sun As Simile: Bringing Nature Into Language Arts Middle School Classrooms, Stormy Kage

Master of Arts in Professional Writing Capstones

Teaching the Sun as Simile is an essay that explores an interdisciplinary approach to teaching middle school English Language Arts (ELA) by infusing nature and environmental studies. This essay defines emerging concepts of new literacy studies and eco-criticism, literacy, and composition as it relates to ELA pedagogy. Also, it provides an explanation for the importance and relevance of using nature to develop an ecosystem of better readers, writers and communicators in middle school general ed and special ed classrooms.

The Van Hiele Analysis Of Curricular Materials: A Comparative Study, Vinay Kumar Kalyankar

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The goal of this study is to investigate K-8 geometry curriculum standards and textbooks for their effectiveness in preparing students for high school geometry. The basis for the study is van Hiele theory pioneered by the Dutch educators and researchers of geometric understanding in adolescents, Dina van Hiele Geldof and Pierre van Hiele. Another driving force for this dissertation is research into mathematics textbooks and curriculum standards of school mathematics as seen in CCSSM and state specific standards documents, both of which influence the mathematics students have the opportunity to learn.

The K-8 geometry curriculum standards and textbook instructional segments …

Are You Listening? How Listening Skills Help Students Become Informed And Engaged Citizens In A Culturally Diverse World, Nicole Schwaben

Honors Projects

The ability to listen is vital for good communication to exist and flourish. Without properly developed listening skills, one may unintentionally create roadblocks when communicating with others. Good communication will allow for the spread of differing ideas and perspectives. The social studies classroom is a place in which students have the opportunity to develop skills to become good citizens. These skills include the ability to make reasoned and informed decisions and interact with a culturally diverse and interdependent world. In order to achieve these skills, students must engage in discussion with their peers. While there is a focus on the …

See And Be Seen: Young Adult Refugee Literature In The High School Curriculum, Patrice Splan

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, there are more than 25 million refugees in the world today, over half of whom are under the age of 18. As these young people adapt to new schools and communities, it is essential that all students have opportunities to see themselves represented in literature and to develop understandings of the experiences of others. This project provides an analysis of young adult refugee literature with a unit plan for application of texts in a ninth-grade Virginia English classroom, stressing the importance of education as a tool for awareness, reflection, and empathy.

Curriculum Change: A Study On Teacher Perceptions Of Curriculum Change On Content Standards, Tiffany Kessler-Hopek

Theses and Dissertations

In the United States, curriculum has encountered frequent changes throughout years. The main initiative of educational change has three main components, and they are to increase the quality and rigor of the curriculum, have a common curriculum, and prepare students for secondary education. The standards in the state of Georgia have changed from Georgia Performance Standards and Common Core State Standards to the more recent Georgia Standards of Excellence. By the school year 2018-2019, the Georgia Standards of Excellence should be fully adopted. An explanatory sequential mixed methods study was conducted to examine the perceptions of teachers on curriculum change …

The Oasis Skateboard Factory: Return To The One-Room Schoolhouse, William Robertson

Selected Works Temporary Series

How can you get young people interested in science and mathematics? What efforts are there to integrate the experiences of high school students into the things they need to do and learn in school? How can action sports, like skateboarding be used to teach science, mathematics, language arts, history and help at-rick and marginalized students to grow in their engagement and motivation in high school, as well as to graduate? This is in part answered at the Oasis Skateboard Factory (OSF) an alternative high school in Toronto, Canada. The factory, under the direction of founding teacher Craig Morrison, has enjoyed …

Using Stories To Teach, Julianna Cajka

Honors Projects

By nature, human beings are drawn to stories. Even from a young age, a good story can capture our attention, engage our emotions, and build a sense of community. The contextualizing function of stories is an essential tool for making sense of information and events, and we tend to remember stories better than information communicated in other ways. These are all reasons why stories can and should have a place in classroom teaching. My project contains a portfolio of lesson plans written to be used in middle or high school language arts classrooms. These lesson plans (and other instructional materials) …

Poetically Composed, Educationally Imposed: Exploring Imagination And Poetics In Curriculum—A Memoir, Whitney J. Presnal

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Through the use of memoir, my work centers on how poetry is situated within public education curriculum. I explore the curricular context of poetry through the lenses of my lived experiences in early childhood, as a K-12 student, and as an early career classroom teacher. My dissertation draws upon a wide array of literature, honing in on the poetic perspectives of philosophers (Aristotle, 1996; Heidegger, 1947 & 1971/2013; Plato, 1955/2007), poets (Hall, 2003; Eliot, 1920 & 2009), and curriculum theorists (Leggo, 1997 & 2018; Pinar, 1994; Sameshima, 2007). The foundation of my work is drawn from my own circular experiences, …

The Oasis Skateboard Factory: Return To The One-Room Schoolhouse, William Robertson

Departmental Papers (TE)

How can you get young people interested in science and mathematics? What efforts are there to integrate the experiences of high school students into the things they need to do and learn in school? How can action sports, like skateboarding be used to teach science, mathematics, language arts, history and help at-rick and marginalized students to grow in their engagement and motivation in high school, as well as to graduate? This is in part answered at the Oasis Skateboard Factory (OSF) an alternative high school in Toronto, Canada. The factory, under the direction of founding teacher Craig Morrison, has enjoyed …

Teaching Writing: Genre Lessons For Teaching Writing In The Homeschool High School Classroom And Beyond, Teagan R. Knoblich

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

Most high schoolers in America operate with basic writing skills at best (U.S. Department of Education, 2012). Students who are educated at home, or homeschoolers, may be only marginally better in their writing skills, if at all. A review of materials available to home educators for the instruction of their homeschool students revealed that available writing curricula does not do a good job covering more than a few basic writing forms, such as research and narrative. This creative project aimed to create writing instruction materials that could be used by home educators to teach their high school students how to …

Secondary Biology Instruction In The General Senior Secondary Schools Of Aceh Province Indonesia: An Analysis Of Teachers’ Opinions And Teaching Practices Related To The Indonesia Biology Curriculum 2013, Wiwit Artika

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

My study was to discover the perceptions of general secondary senior high school biology teachers about the application of curriculum 2013. Their further opinions of biology topics and the instructional practices in the class have supported the findings of this study. In addressing this study, general senior secondary school (GSSS) biology teachers (n=286) from 22 districts in Aceh province randomly participated in my study. Thus, six (n=6) teachers were selected as convenience sampling to have a one-on-one phone interview. The data collected were analyzed descriptively (frequency and percentage) and thematically to answer the research questions.

The documents comparison between the …

Cybersecurity In The Classroom: Bridging The Gap Between Computer Access And Online Safety, Andrew Malecki

Cyber Security Capstone Research Project Reports

According to ISACA, there will be a global shortage of 2 million cybersecurity professionals worldwide by 2019. Additionally, according to Experian Data Breach Resolution, as much as 80% of all network breaches can be traced to employee negligence. These problems will not solve themselves, and they likewise won’t improve without drastic action. An effort needs to be made to help direct interested and qualified individuals to the field of cybersecurity to move toward closing this gap. Moreover, steps need to be made to better inform the public of general safety measures while online, including the safeguarding of sensitive information.

A …

Integrating Ethnic Studies In Social Studies Curriculum, Alyssa Denise Hernández

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

Traditional social studies curriculum in the K-12 system focuses on United States history through a Eurocentric lens. The issue with focusing on a black-and-white version of history impacts people of color from ethnic backgrounds that are not equally represented in the curriculum. The research conducted for this project specifically focuses on the impact of this subject matter on individuals in a predominantly Latino community. Through surveys and interviews, the researcher presents feedback on the experiences of these individuals and provides possible solutions on how schools can improve social studies curriculum at the high school level to be more culturally relevant …

Intersections: A Theology And Social Justice Curriculum For Christian High Schools, Rachel Lanae Hollingsworth

Honors Projects

Despite much writing on the intersection of race and ethnicity and theology, there are few suitable resources for high school teachers at Protestant Christian schools, so this project seeks to fill that gap by providing a curriculum written for conservative, Christian high schools. The curriculum emphasizes the study of scripture and theological witness in conjunction with relevant literature and media to challenge students to consider a more holistic understanding of the role of identity, inclusion, justice, and reconciliation in their faith. This will be facilitated by asking thought-provoking questions, thinking through issues of faith, providing a foundation for theological exploration, …

Experiencing The Implementation Of New Inquiry Science Curricula, Peter S. Ower

College of Education Theses and Dissertations

Using a phenomenological methodology, a cohort of four experienced science teachers was interviewed about their experience transitioning from traditional, teacher and fact-centered science curricula to inquiry-based curricula. Each teacher participated in two interviews that focused on their teaching backgrounds, their experience teaching the prior traditional curriculum, and their experience teaching the new inquiry-based curriculum. The findings are presented as a narrative of each teachers’ experience with the new curriculum implementation. Analyzing the data revealed four key themes. 1) The teachers felt trapped by the old curriculum as it did not align with their positive views of teaching science through inquiry. …

Cultivating Student Voice: Writing As A Tool For Multilingual And Multicultural Students To Develop Language, Identity, And Cultural Competence, Gaeun Lee

Master's Projects and Capstones

The importance of using writing as an educational tool to English learners cannot be understated. It is critical for youth learning English as their second language to be encouraged to value their first language, culture, and identity by writing. Unfortunately, many teachers overlook the significance of the writing activity, which can be greatly helpful to develop the English learners’ language and cultural competence and their identity, specifically for multilingual and multicultural youth.

This project is developed with the purpose of cultivating student voice by using writing as a tool. The project is based on the two theories: the affective filter …

An Analysis Of Ohio School Districts, Ernest M. Oleksy

The Downtown Review: An Interdisciplinary Journal Written and Peer-Reviewed by Mandel Honors College Students at Cleveland State University

Money has recently been posited to be a panacea for education: the more a district spends on its students, the better their results will be. However, actuarial analysis of school districts shows that this ideology is muddled in inconsistency. To determine the effect of money on education, the Ohio Report Cards of four school districts were observed. Upon inspection, explanations for the evident correlations are made to discover that money does not have an additive effect on academic success.

Connections Between Project-Based Learning And Mathematics Instruction: Exploring Their Integration In Classroom Curricula, Zoe Nietert

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Projects

Project-based learning is poorly defined leading to confusion and inconsistent implementation in the classroom. To eliminate the use of project-based learning as educational jargon it is imperative to define the term. This project aims to define project-based learning in a manner that outlines its critical and variable attributes. From the established definition, a rubric is created to determine the quality of project-based learning materials, specifically in the context of math education. The purpose of the rubric is to create a tool to be used in future classrooms as a means of identifying classroom curricula that demonstrate both project-based learning and …

Refreshment For The Soul: A Phenomenological Study Of The Student Experience Of Beauty In School, Paul Reiff

Dissertations

Prompted by the ratio-scientific emphasis in the curriculum, I conducted this study to explore the lifeworlds of students to understand their lived experience of beauty in school. This investigation entailed a phenomenological study, the method of which included in-depth interviews and focus group discussions with four high school students. This study aimed to examine the essence of beauty in the lived experience of students in school, to explore the perceptions of students regarding school as a place to appreciate beauty, and to understand the needs of students as a place that develops their aesthetic sensibilities. The findings include the description …

An Investigation Into The Accessibility Of Ap Calculus, Brian Austin Dodge

Capstones, Research Projects, and Curricula

This is a mixed methods ethnographic study conducted to determine what obstacles students face when approaching AP Calculus. I focused my study on home economics, peer pressure, ELL status and home support. Overall, I found that being a student who is ELL (hereafter defined as a student who was or currently is required to take ACCESS testing) had the most negative effect of the previously listed factors. Home economics and peer pressure were inconclusive or often had no effect. Finally, having a supportive home life in the form of parents who value education, encourage goal-setting, and set high expectations had …

Knowledge, Perceptions, And Outcomes Of Agricultural Communications Curriculum In Arkansas Secondary Agricultural Classrooms, Carley Payne Calico

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this mixed method study was to assess the effectiveness of agricultural communications curriculum developed and incorporated into a semester-long agricultural leadership and communications course for secondary agricultural education programs in Arkansas. This study was comprised of three parts including a pilot test, teacher training assessment, and a descriptive field test over a two-year period. For the pilot test portion of the study, students (N = 297) participated in newly developed instructional modules (careers, writing, design, and multimedia) predetermined by a committee of agricultural education and communications faculty at the University of Arkansas. The pilot test indicated students' …

The New York City Doe/Cuny Library Collaborative: Bridging The Gap Between High School And College, Curtis L. Kendrick, Leanne Ellis, Lisa Castillo Richmond, Sharae D. Brown, Robert Farrell, Alison Lehner-Quam, Nathan Mickelson, Mehgann Walk

Library Scholarship

This white paper presents the progression and the processes of the New York Collaborative Curriculum Revision Project (CCRP), a collaborative of high school teachers, college faculty, and librarians, formed to build upon the new Common Core State Standards designed to help students develop and become more adept at reading critically, conducting rigorous research, and being better prepared for postsecondary success. This paper presents CCRP as a model to be replicated, modified and strengthened. The DOE/CUNY Library Collaborative is central to the development of the model and shares its successes and hard-learned lessons in its steps to recruit, engage, and facilitate …

Voices At The Table: Collaboration And Intertextuality, Sue C. Kimmel, Kathryn Kennedy (Ed.), Lucy Santos Green (Ed.)

STEMPS Faculty Publications

While we often associate reading aloud with children and particularly younger children, the practice of reading aloud has historically been a way for a community to share texts for information and enjoyment. Findings from a year-long study of a school librarian collaborating with a team of second grade teachers demonstrates the value of reading aloud in building background knowledge and vocabulary, modeling, understanding curriculum, creating common texts, and reading for enjoyment. Reading aloud brought other voices to the table in a clear example of intertextuality. Implications are shared for school librarians interested in similar practices as well as future research …