Teacher Education and Professional Development Commons^™

A Study Of The Implementation Of Character Education, Learning Environment, And School Performance Scores In Selected Parishes In Louisiana, Cynthia Ford Pilcher

Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate two sets of relationships: the relationship between character education and learning environment, and the relationship between character education and School Performance Scores in 17 elementary schools located in five public school districts in northeast Louisiana. Principal and teacher (K–6) respondents completed a 15-item questionnaire designed to measure their perceptions of the level of implementation of character education in the school setting and a 15-item questionnaire assessing perception of the learning environment. Data from surveys completed by school personnel were gathered to allow analyses by school, grade level taught, number of years experience, …

Measuring The Environmental Attitudes Of Children In Grade 4: A Study In Clark County, Amir Khawaja

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The purpose of this study was to examine whether there is an increased positive effect on children's attitude when they are taught about the environment in an outdoor/hands-on setting versus an indoor traditional classroom setting. The study focused on grade four students in the Clark County School District. Half of the group was comprised of students that were taught about the environment using traditional classroom learning materials while the other half consisted of students that were taught using the outdoor/hands-on approach. In order to test the results, the students were given a survey. The questionnaire created by Malkus and Musser …

Education In Costa Rica: Best Practices And Beyond, Trey Fitch

Perspectives In Learning

Costa Rica is considered to be the most developed of the Central American countries because it has a relatively high Gross Domestic Product per capita as well as best indicators of life expectancy at birth, infant mortality rate, and adult literacy rate (United Nations Development Program, 1999). Much of this success has been attributed to its progressive education system. Costa Rica is one of the few countries in the world to exist without a national military system, consequently, more money can be diverted into educational programs. The adult literacy rate is near 95% and rivals the United States where the …

Praxis: Do I Practice What I Believe? A Course In Research In The Language Classroom For The English Language Teacher Education Program At Universidad Centroamericana, Nicaragua, Sarah Renata Wright

MA TESOL Collection

I have asked myself to describe my teaching beliefs and analyze my teaching practice in order to see if the two are congruent and if in fact I do have a teaching praxis. This is a professional paper about course development based on a classroom research project. First, through a discussion of theories, experiences, and observations I describe my teaching beliefs. Second, I describe the Research in English Language Teaching course that I designed and taught to a group fourth year student teachers at the Universidad Centroamericana in Nicaragua. This description is based on a selection of student writings, lesson …

Ethnic Identity In Transition: Chinese New Year Through The Years, Elaine Chan

Department of Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education: Faculty Publications

Multiculturalism has been identified as the key educational issue of the epoch. However, despite studies acknowledging the importance of multiculturalism and multilingualism in school contexts and research that attests to the importance of teachers learning about individual students’ experiences of culture rather than generalizing knowledge about culture groups to individual students, there exists only a small, and mostly recent, literature examining ethnic identity experientially. In the spirit of work done by Phillion (1999, 2002), He (1998, 2002a, b), and Hoffman (1989) examining the complexities of factors shaping a sense of ethnic identity, I examine here the experiences of first-generation Chinese …

Improving Teaching Through Classroom Action Research, Gwynn Mettetal

Professional and Organizational Development Network in Higher Education: Archives

This essay discusses how to conduct small, in-class research projects on student learning in order to document teaching effectiveness and select appropriate teaching strategies.

Helping Students Help Each Other: Making Peer Feedback More Valuable, Linda B. Nilson

Professional and Organizational Development Network in Higher Education: Archives

Student peer feedback can be emotionally biased, misinformed, and/or superficial. This essay discusses two types of feedback that yield neutral, valid, and detailed information and enhance students’ audience awareness.

Teaching Circles: Making Inquiry Safe For Faculty, Laurel Black, Mary Ann Cessna

Professional and Organizational Development Network in Higher Education: Archives

How can I improve my teaching? Pressured by a need for high student ratings and administrative demands for excellence in teaching, faculty find a haven and room to learn in teaching circles.

Creating A Culture Of Co-Learners With Problem-Based Learning, Kristi L. Arndt

Professional and Organizational Development Network in Higher Education: Archives

Problem-based learning requires a significant shift in the roles and responsibilities traditionally assigned to teachers and students. This essay examines the challenge of truly empowering students as self-directed learners.

Achieving Teaching And Learning Excellence Through Faculty Learning Communities, Milton D. Cox

Professional and Organizational Development Network in Higher Education: Archives

The impressive learning outcomes of student learning communities can be replicated for faculty learning communities (FLCs). This essay describes FLCs and ways they enhance faculty and student learning.

Team Teaching: The Learning Side Of The Teaching-Learning Equation, Mary Jane Eisen, Elizabeth J. Tisdell

Professional and Organizational Development Network in Higher Education: Archives

Emphasizing shared ownership of teaching and learning through collaboration, this essay explores the multi-directional process of adult learning in different types of learning situations including on-line education.

Leading Culturally Sensitive Classroom Discussions Following September 11, Devorah Lieberman

Professional and Organizational Development Network in Higher Education: Archives

his essay focuses on strategies for facilitating successful classroom discussion related to the events of 9/11. These suggestions are based on strategies implemented on several campuses across the country.

Story-Based Foreign Language Learning, Jose' Villavicencio

Perspectives In Learning

Foreign language education has transitioned from a grammar-based approach, with an emphasis on form, to a communication-based approach, with an emphasis on meaning (Brown, & Vidal, 2001). Although both approaches are philosophically juxtaposed, the knowledge of grammar is required to accurately communicate in the target language. This review will clarify the distinctions between programs based on meaning and form, and then show that story-based learning improves the teaching of grammar as well as the learning of the target language. Story-based learning bridges meaning and form instruction by contextualizing both. This approach, known as “Language Arts” in English education, has surfaced …

A Teacher Training Program On Reflection, Niura Regiane Henke

MA TESOL Collection

This paper reports the teacher training program I developed and conducted to introduce student teachers to the practice of reflection. The paper is based on the lesson plans, participants’ reactions and observations, and personal reflections on how the program evolved. The data collected in my research draws on relevant materials published in the literature of this area. As a final conclusion, I analyze the program as a whole. From this analysis I derive conclusions which might be useful to other teachers and teacher trainers interested in the reflective practice.

Relationship Between Select Variables And Teacher Rentention, Connie Sue Greiner

Faculty Dissertations

The major purpose of this study, conducted during the spring and summer semesters of 2003, was to determine the relationship between the following variables and teacher retention: Professional Development Examination for the Certification of Educators in Texas (PD ExCET) scores, Texas Academic Skills Program (TASP) reading scores, age at time of passing the PD ExCET, ethnicity, completion of a field-based teacher education program or emergency permit teacher education program, gender, and undergraduate grade point average.

The quantitative study identified students from a single Texas senior-level university who passed the PD ExCET between September 1, 1996 and August 30, 2000. Five …

Unlearning: A Critical Element In The Learning Process, Virginia S. Lee

Professional and Organizational Development Network in Higher Education: Archives

Research has shown that prior knowledge is a critical determinant in learning. This essay explores the role of student misconceptions and how instructors should address them during the learning process.

Constructivism: Defense Or A Continual Critical Appraisal – A Response To Gil-Pérez Et Al., Mansoor Niaz, Fouad Abd-El-Khalick, Alicia Benarroch, Liberato Cardellini, Carlos E. Laburu, NicoláS Marín, Luis A. Montes, Robert Nola, Yuri Orlik, Lawrence C. Scharmann, Chin-Chung Tsai, Georgios Tsaparlis

Department of Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education: Faculty Publications

Abstract. This commentary is a critical appraisal of Gil-Pérez et al.’s (2002) conceptualization of constructivism. It is argued that the following aspects of their presentation are problematic: (a) Although the role of controversy is recognized, the authors implicitly subscribe to a Kuhnian perspective of ‘normal’ science; (b) Authors fail to recognize the importance of von Glasersfeld’s contribution to the understanding of constructivism in science education; (c) The fact that it is not possible to implement a constructivist pedagogy without a constructivist epistemology has been ignored; and (d) Failure to recognize that the metaphor of the ‘student as a developing scientist’ …

The Risk Of Intelligent Design, Lawrence C. Scharmann

Department of Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education: Faculty Publications

Alternative explanations to evolution are very popular these days. An articulate advocacy exists for the Intelligent Design (ID) theory, led nationally by the Seattle-based Discovery Institute and academicians like Michael Behe (1996), Phillip Johnson (1997), and William Dembski (1998). In many U.S. communities science teachers are besieged with requests by local boards of education to include ID and evidence against evolution. Whether national or local, those representing the latest attacks on biological evolution demand such alternatives out of fairness, for religious reasons, or to protect a basic freedom of choice. The motives of individuals making these demands notwithstanding, the consequences …

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Perspectives In Learning

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Beyond Diversity: An Academic Infusion Model (A.I.M.) Of Multicultural Teacher Education, Rita Mitchell, Bonita Williams, Paulina Kuforiji

Perspectives In Learning

Teacher Education Programs provide the knowledge, skills and experience that enable pre-service teachers to become effective educators. Multicultural Education should be a significant part of the academic foundation for preservice education programs. This article examines the rationale for the utilization of the Academic Infusion Model (A.I.M.) of Multicultural Education in Teacher Education Programs. Teachers are ultimately responsible for establishing and maintaining an educational environment where students are provided opportunities to develop to their full potential. Therefore teacher quality is the most important factor in considering the effectiveness of a school. Educational administrators are faced with the responsibility of hiring qualified …

Equine Assisted Therapy, Kristie Luckett, Cindy Witsell

Perspectives In Learning

Equine Assisted Therapy (EAP) is a unique, intensive, short-term approach to helping individuals with various mental health concerns. This article will explain what EAP is, what is needed in order to conduct an EAP therapy session, provide a case study to demonstrate how EAP has been and can be utilized in practice, and finally, list the strengths of EAP. The information contained in this article is based on information provided by a therapist experienced in utilizing Equine Assisted Therapy.

Understanding And Responding To The Needs Of Nontraditional College Students, Joyce Hickson

Perspectives In Learning

The statistical profile of today’s American college student indicates that this sector is overwhelmingly “nontraditional”. The nontraditional student possesses at least one or more of the following characteristics: married; a parent; 25 years or older; returning to college after having been out of school for a number of years; financially independent from parents; attending school on a part-time basis (U. S. Department of Education, 2002). According to the Columbus State University Fall, 2002 Enrollment Report (Wallman, 2002) the average age of undergraduate students is 25 years, while the graduate student mean age is 37 years. Additionally, large numbers of CSU …

An Academy For The Development Of Transformational Leaders, Roger Hatcher

Perspectives In Learning

The Summer of 2002 ushered in an important training model for aspiring local school leaders. Through a joint partnership funded by the Muscogee County School District, Columbus State University began this training with a cohort of twenty-four leadership candidates chosen by the school system. The mission of this newly formed leadership academy was to develop transformational leaders who would possess the knowledge, the performance skills and the dispositions vital to create and foster positive cultures of learning for all students.

Metaphor: A Counselor's Tool For Change, Kenyada Owens

Perspectives In Learning

Counseling and metaphors encompass the process of change and action through language and dialogue. According to Gareth Morgan (2002), “Images and metaphors are not only interpretive constructs or ways of seeing, they also provide frameworks for action. Their use creates insights that often allow us to act in ways that we may not have thought possible before” (p. 1). Metaphors, from the counseling perspective, can serve as a vehicle for implementing change. Whether directly or indirectly, clients seek the help of therapeutic professionals with the intent of initiating some form of growth or change. Although the process of transformation is …

Edison Schools In Bibb County, Georgia, Amy P. Fouse

Perspectives In Learning

In March of 1999, the Bibb County Board of Education made a controversial decision to hire private, for profit Edison Schools to run two of its low-performing elementary schools. Parents of nine Bibb County elementary schools were given the option to adopt this corporation and contract them to run their schools (Cass, 1999). Of the nine elementary schools, Riley Elementary and King Elementary chose the program. Investigation of The Edison Project was initiated by Superintendent Dr. Gene Buinger in 1998. Less than one year later, and after many heated debates, a five-year contract was signed to pay Edison “roughly $1 …

Preface, Volume 21 (2002), Catherine M. Wehlburg

To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development

Preface to volume 21 (2003) of To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development, by Devorah Lieberman of Portland State University.

Introduction. Volume 21 (2003), Catherine M. Wehlburg

To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development

Introduction to volume 21 (2003) of To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development, by Devorah Lieberman of Portland State University.

September 11, 2001, As A Teachable Moment, Edward Zlotkowski

To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development

The Opening Plenary at the 2001 POD Conference was given by Edward Zlotkowski. Using the reactions to the events of September 11, 2001, as an example, he urged those in higher education to search out opportunities for academically based civic engagement and to focus on Boyer’s concept of the scholarship of engagement.

The Day After: Faculty Behavior In Post–September 11, 2001, Classes, Michele Dipietro

To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development

What is the best thing to do in the classroom in the face of a tragedy like the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001? What should instructors do to help students, if anything? This article describes the results ofa faculty survey at Carnegie Mellon University. Faculty reported what actions they took in the classroom to help their students (or their rationales for not mentioning the attacks), and their degree of confidence on the effectiveness of their behaviors. Statistical techniques are used to assess the significance of some trends, and implications for faculty developers are discussed in light of cognitive, motivational, …

Internationalizing American Higher Education: A Call To Thought And Action, Deborah Dezure

To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development

In the wake of the World Trade Center disaster, many faculty developers are asking themselves what they do to promote international peace and understanding. But even before these events, there has been an indication that there was a pressing need to focus on global competencies as an important part of higher education for the 21st century. The purpose of this essay is threefold: 1) to summarize the research on the status of internationalization on American campuses, 2) to make the case for the active involvement of faculty developers in internationalizing higher education, and 3) to offer strategies with which we …