Teacher Education and Professional Development Commons^™

Role Of Cmc-Embedded Webquests In Enhancement Of Online Students' Knowledge And Understanding Of German Culture - A Case Study, Radhika Lothe

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Existing approaches to teaching `culture' in the realm of Distance foreign language (FL) instruction and gaps within; under-researched Computer Assisted Language Learning (CALL) tool of webquests; and Mediation in Sociocultural Theory (SCT) have all led to the following case study. This study was guided by the constructs of `culture' in FL instruction, Sociocultural Theory, and literature in CALL and Computer-Mediated Communication (CMC).

This study examines how CMC-embedded webquests (asynchronous and synchronous CMC components built into webquests) developed online students' knowledge and understanding of German culture. Additionally, this study examines what mediating strategies (Lidz, 2002) were used by the online students …

Technology Use As Transformative Pedagogy: Using Video Editing Technology To Learn About Teaching, Michelle Macy

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Within the paradigm of Sociocultural Theory, and using Activity Theory as a data-gathering and management tool, this microgenetic case study examined the processes - the growth, change, and development – engaged in by student-teachers in a foreign language education program as they worked together to complete an activity. The activity involved digital video recording and editing, mediators which were intended to facilitate the iterative review of and subsequent reflection and action upon the content of the video during its creation.

By investigating the process of contextual interaction between learners and the mediational elements of their environment as the activity progressed, …

Perceptions On Collaborative Learning: A Case Study Of Female Community College Instructors, Marilyn Christine Armstrong

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In the 1980s, academic assessments called for "the ability of individuals and groups to talk, listen judge, and act on issues of common interest" (Morse, 1989, p. 30). More recently, corporate research findings, Are They Ready to Work? Employers' Perspectives on the Basic Knowledge and Applied Skills of New Entrants to the 21st Century U.S. Workforce (The Conference Board, Inc., Partnership for 21st Century Skills, The Corporate Voices for Working Families, & Society for Human Resource Management, 2006), report the workplace is seeking college graduates with skill in collaboration (e.g. build diverse relationships, negotiate, manage conflict). While the interest in …

Preservice Teachers' Perceptions Of Their Perspective Transformations: A Case Study, Victoria Caruana

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Utilizing a case study approach, this study explored the perspectives of preservice teachers as they relate to working with students with disabilities in inclusive classroom settings. Preservice teachers' perceptions about the extent, if any, their learning experiences during teacher preparation contributed to their perspectives was examined through a sequential exploratory design that employed both quantitative and qualitative data. The findings of this case study of six (6) elementary and secondary preservice teachers indicated that the experiences they had during their final student teaching (internship) were the most meaningful triggers of their perspective transformations. The findings further indicated that four (4) …

A Case Study Of Adolescent Females' Perceptions Of Identity In An After-School Book Club, Holly Atkins

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Reading is a perennial educational hot topic - but now extends for beyond early literacy to the secondary level. Reading researchers are growing in our knowledge of how to reach and teach struggling adolescent readers yet too often success in literacy is measured solely by performance on standardized tests. Literacy is seen on one hand as a one-dimensional set of skills students need to possess to be successful in school and their future workplaces. A more expansive view of the importance of literacy and what it means to adolescent females' growth as individuals and members of communities is needed.

This …

The Impact Of An Online Learning Community Project On University Chinese As A Foreign Language Students' Motivation, Shengrong Cai

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study empirically investigated the impact of an online learning community project on university students' motivation in learning Chinese as a foreign language (CFL). A newly-proposed L2 motivation theory - the L2 motivational self system (Dörnyei 2005; 2009) - was used as the theoretical framework for this study. The three aspects of motivation (ideal L2 self, ought-to L2 self, and L2 learning experience), as described in this theory, were measured before and after the online project. Specific motivating and demotivating features of the online project were generated from participants' responses. Four individuals with different heritage and technology backgrounds were selected …

Opportunity To Learn (Otl) And The Alignment Of Upper Division Mathematics Learning Outcomes, Textbooks, And The National Assessment In Belize, Gabriel Cal

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In this study I investigate the degree of alignment among the learning outcomes, textbooks, and the national assessment in Belize. To establish the degree of alignment, Webb‘s Four Cognitive Levels of Depth of Knowledge was used to analyze the levels of cognitive demand for each curriculum. The degree of alignment of the learning outcomes with the test items and textbooks was used to determine the extent to which the textbooks provide students with the opportunity to study the learning outcomes assessed by the national assessment. The opportunity to learn (OTL) measures addressed were the curricular content coverage and types of …

A National Survey Of Instructional Strategies Used To Teach Information Systems Courses: An Exploratory Investigation, Yenni Merlin Djajalaksana

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Many universities and colleges have placed increased emphasis on teaching excellence in higher education. Efforts to promote teaching excellence vary from the development of alternative new pedagogies as well as research exploring strategies to improve existing teaching practices. Logically, different disciplines employ different instructional strategies to prepare their graduates with specific skills, knowledge, and attitudes. This study examined the instructional strategies used most frequently in the information systems discipline and was inspired by Shulman's (2005) concept of signature pedagogies - the unique but pervasive ways of teaching within a discipline or profession.

This dissertation reports a national survey of instructional …

The Relationship Between Statistics Self-Efficacy, Statistics Anxiety, And Performance In An Introductory Graduate Statistics Course, William Ray Schneider

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between statistics self-efficacy, statistics anxiety, and performance in introductory graduate statistics courses. The study design compared two statistics self-efficacy measures developed by Finney and Schraw (2003), a statistics anxiety measure developed by Cruise and Wilkins (1980), and a course performance measure. To view self-efficacy from two perspectives, the Current Statistics Self-Efficacy (CSSE) assessed student confidence in their ability to complete specific statistics tasks in the present, whereas Self-Efficacy to Learn Statistics (SELS) assessed student confidence in their ability to learn statistics in the future. The performance measure was the combined …

Parent Involvement In Children's Schooling: An Investigation Of Measurement Equivalence Across Ethnic Groups, Heather Marie Scott

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Epstein et al.'s Theory of Overlapping Spheres of Influence focuses on the interaction and communication, or partnerships, among families, schools, and the community to bring the three closer together. The theory works in conjunction with Epstein's typology of parental involvement, which focuses on six types of involvement that are instrumental to a child's development and his/her school and educational success. These serve as the framework for the study and support the construct of parent's involvement in children's schooling.

The purpose of the current study was to conduct further validation analyses of an inventory designed to measure the construct of parent …

The Role Of Program Climate And Socialization In The Retention Of Engineering Undergraduates, Heather Elizabeth Ureksoy

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Increasing women's participation in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) can promote a healthy economy by ensuring a diverse and well-qualified STEM workforce, not only in the quantity of females in the workforce, but diversity in thinking and creativity. It will also send a positive message to young women about the breadth of educational opportunities and career choices they have available to them. However, women continue to participate in engineering education in a far lower rate than men. Attracting and retaining female students has become a challenging problem for the academic engineering community. In this study, a …

Examining The Experiences Of A Select Group Of First Year Special Education Teachers: A Multiple Case Study Analysis, Roseanne Kaiser Vallice

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The attrition rate of beginning special educators has been a constant and growing concern within the field of education (Boe & Cook, 2006, 2008; Brownell, Hirsch, & Seo, 2004; CEC, 2000; Leko & Smith, 2010; Smith & Ingersoll, 2004). Four to five of every ten new special education teachers leave the field within the first five years (CEC, 2000; Olivarez & Arnold, 2006) and beginning special education teachers are more likely than general education teachers to leave the field within the first five years of teaching (Boe & Cook, 2006, Boe, Cook & Sunderland, 2008; Brownell, Hirsch, & Seo, 2004; …

The Positive Illusory Bias: Do Adhd Symptoms Differ Among Young Adolescents With Accurate Versus Discrepant Self-Perceptions?, Sarah A. Fefer

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to gain insight into whether inattentive, hyperactive/ impulsive, and depressive symptoms differ among young adolescents with negative, accurate, or positive self-perceptions of their academic and social competence. Current literature suggests that elementary-age children with ADHD display overly positive self-perceptions, often referred to as the positive illusory bias (PIB; Owens, Goldfine, Evangelista, Hoza, & Kaiser, 2007). Self-reports of academic and social self-concept were compared to teacher ratings and test scores for 164 middle school students in an effort to determine if the PIB was present within this sample. Inattentive and hyperactive/impulsive symptoms were found to …

Middle School Transition: How It Affects The Achievement Of Hispanic Students Relative To Ell Status, Socioeconomic Status, Gender, And Previous Test Scores, Kevin D. Gordon

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the phenomena of middle school transition and achievement as it relates to Hispanic students. According to the 2000 U.S. census, there are more than 35 million registered Hispanic citizens. Of those, 3.6 million are public school students. The literature indicated that there was a marked regression in student achievement during the transition to middle school.

Through the use of descriptive statistics and regression analysis, sixth grade Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT) reading and math developmental scale scores (DSS) were analyzed to determine if the mean achievement improved or declined after the transition …

Systematic Development And Validation Of A Course Of Instruction In Prior Learning Assessment, John D. Mcnally

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Many post-secondary schools across the country offer adult working students an opportunity to obtain at least partial credit for work and life experiences in their curriculum through portfolios. The primary goal of this project was to design, develop and evaluate a portfolio course for adult students at a small independent university. Design emphasized adult learning theory and incorporated instructional design best practices throughout. Also significant to the design was the implementation of the Quality Matters ™ Rubric. The project focus was to intertwine the six assumptions of adult learning theory while implementing best practices and effective instructional strategies, and to …

The Dynamic Graphic Organizer And Its Influence On Making Factual, Comparative, And Inferential Determinations Within Comparative Content, Cameron Spears

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

By augmenting an existing static medium (a graphic organizer) with attributes such that learners were able to sort or rearrange information in multiple ways, two new types of “dynamic” graphic organizers were created. An experiment was performed to investigate the effectiveness of these dynamic graphic organizers as instructional tools. One-hundred-sixty-one students were recruited for participation in the study from a two-year community college and a four-year public university in the southeast United States. Participants were randomly assigned to one of three graphic organizer treatment groups: static, sortable, and shuffle-sortable. Response accuracy and response latency measurements for three types of mental …

Experiences Of Foreign Language Teachers And Students Using A Technology-Mediated Oral Assessment, Jeannie Ducher

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The development of the speaking skill at the lower levels of proficiency is seldom assessed as a matter-of-fact in the foreign language classroom, for reasons of impracticality and difficulty of implementation. Although the practice of the speaking skill is an important part of current approaches to the teaching of foreign languages, issues of time and logistics often prohibit the direct evaluation of the skill in a manner consistent with best practices, which purport that practice and assessment must be closely aligned, and that students benefit from self-evaluation and teacher feedback. Classroom research has shown that a skill that is not …

Belonging In Parent-School Partnerships: Perspectives Of Parents Of Middle School Students With Autism, Michael Wayne Riley

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The goal of this study is to contribute to understandings of parent-school relationships involving parents of students with autism by exploring notions of belonging with a small group of parents. The purpose of the study is to describe the experiences of middle school parents of children with autism. From these descriptions, I examined how parents of students with autism might contribute to understandings of belonging in school-family partnerships and enable schools and families to collaborate more effectively. This study addresses an apparent gap in understandings of belonging of parents of children with autism in their relationships with their child's school. …